Code Zombie
by Red S. Turtle
Summary: A mysterious virus that causes the dead to rise up and attack the living begins to spread across Area 11.
1. Chapter 1

_This fic won't start being updated regularly until one of my current regulars ends. Fortunately, there's one nearing it's end, so that won't be long from now. The only reason I'm posting this already is because I scribbled it out yesterday, and I love this idea so much I don't want to wait to put it up._

_I got some complaints about Lelouch being "too wimpy" in this chapter, so I changed the first half up a bit. That oughta satisfy ya._

CHAPTER ONE

This can't be happening. There's no way! This sort of situation is beyond impossible!

I double over, panting. I lost my mask earlier, and I don't dare go back for it. The ghetto is in chaos, and I'm worried that if one of those... _things_ doesn't get me, one of the many panicking residents will.

How did this get started? Today was a normal day! I had a meeting this morning with my command staff, and Ohgi was late. He turned up eventually with a Band-Aid on his forearm and explained that "some crazy guy" bit him. "It was probably a bad reaction to Refrain," he'd suggested sadly. "You see that sort of thing every once in a while."

I ordered Inoue to treat the bite, pointing out how full of bacteria the human mouth is. However, not long after she finished, Ohgi collapsed with a high fever.

Rakshata was calling in to look at him, but by the time she arrived, he was already in a coma. Only a few hours later, he was dead. We were discussing what to do with the body when-

I shake my head violently. No! No way! That sort of thing just can't happen in real life! A false diagnoses combined with someone's Geass. It's a stretch, but it's far more likely than...

A low moaning breaks me out of my thoughts and I turn around, startled. A man is shuffling toward me, arms outstretched, his skin an unhealthy greenish-gray. He's missing an eye and a huge chunk of his right shoulder, but seems unbothered by this. I pull my gun and fire as he approaches, but nothing happens. _Crap! Out of ammo!_

I back into a corner, squeezing my eyes shut tight and lifting my arms in a vain attempt to shield my head. In the back of my mind, I can already feel strong arms grabbing me and teeth chomping down to tear out my throat, the way Ohgi tore out Rakshata's. However, none of that happens, and I peek out.

"Tohdoh!" I say, surprised to see him standing in front of me, the creature's teeth clasped on the blade of his sword. He swings it sideways, slicing the thing's head in half. The body falls to the ground and Tohdoh turns to me. "Are you all right, Zero?" he asks.

"More or less," I say breathlessly. Remembering Ohgi, I quickly ask "Have you been bitten?"

Tohdoh shakes his head. "I am unharmed," he assures me. "What about you? You're bleeding." He glances at my right knee.

I follow his gaze. "I fell," I answer honestly. After Ohgi went berserk, I shot him three times: once in the head and twice in the chest. The shots to the chest barely fazed him, only knocking him back momentarily. It was the headshot that took him down permanently. I stood there for a moment, staring in horror at what remained of most of my commanders. I then say Rakshata begin to twitch, and panicked, running out of the trailer as fast as my legs could carry me. I tripped once, and fell, tossing my mask aside in irritation.

"I see," Tohdoh says, looking around. "We should probably get out of here."

"You're probably right."

* * *

Tohdoh and I encounter Kallen during our search for shelter, who informs us of a relatively uninfected apartment building nearby. "I found it earlier while I was searching for you guys," she informs us.

"How many stories is it?" I ask.

"Four or five," Kallen answers. "Well, four or five _livable _ones, in any case."

I nod. "Let's head there for now," I say. "There might be some food we can stock up on, and we should also change into something less likely to get us shot or arrested."

"Yes, sir."

* * *

Once we arrive at the apartment, Tohdoh and Kallen work to destroy the staircases leading up to the second floor while I search for food and clothing. In the former case, I hit the jackpot with a cupboard stuffed to the brim with canned vegetables and cupped ramen, but in the latter, all I can find are either women's clothes or too big for me (though they might fit Tohdoh). I quickly change into a large sweatshirt and a pair of slacks, then start searching for anything else that could be helpful to us until Tohdoh and Kallen return from their task. "We should be safe for a little while," Kallen reports, studying me. "What are you doing?"

"Looking for a lighter. There are empty cigarette packs everywhere, so there must be at least one in this place," I answer, then point to the clothes I set aside for them. "Go change," I order. "We'll stay the night here the-"

_"Attention all ghetto residents!" _The three of us look around for a moment, frowning. "There!" Tohdoh says, indicating a speaker outside the window. We all turn our attention to it as the man who spoke continues. _"A quarantine has been set up at the ghetto perimeter! If you are uninfected, report there and you will be taken to a designated shelter! I repeat..."_

I tune him out, turning back to the other two. "What do you think?" I ask. "Should we trust them?"

Tohdoh and Kallen exchange a glance. "I think we should," Tohdoh answers after a while, much to Kallen's surprise. "The Japanese make up a large portion of the labor force in the Settlement," he points out. "If they leave us to die, they'll only hurt themselves."

I nod. I had come to that conclusion myself. "In addition, if they set up a quarantine and _don't_ let anyone out, there will be a riot, which may allow the monsters to enter the Settlement."

"Are you sure they're monsters?" Kallen asks.

"I'm sure they're not human," I say, remembering Ohgi. "Not anymore, at least."

* * *

The phone only rings a couple of times, but each time it does, I feel like my heart is going to burst from anticipation and dread. Tohdoh and Kallen are making their preparations to leave, so I've decided to take this opportunity to try and get in touch with Nunnally. When she finally _does_ answer, I can't speak for a moment. "Big Brother? Big Brother, is that you? Big Brother!"

"Nunnally..." I say with a sigh of relief.

"Oh, thank goodness!" Nunnally says, sounding relieved. "They're saying on the news that there was another poison gas attack in Shinjuku! Are you okay? Where are you?"

Poison gas again? That must be the Britannian's favorite excuse. "In Shinjuku," I answer, smiling wryly. "I'm okay, though. What about you? Is everything okay over there?"

"_No_," Nunnally says emphatically. "_You're_ not here!"

"Heh, sorry," I say. "I'm with Kallen, and we're just about to head for the quarantine. I should be home by tomorrow morning at the latest, okay?"

"Okay. Be careful, Big Brother."

"I'll do my best. See you soon, Nunnally."

* * *

"Tohdoh, I think you should come with us," I insist before Kallen and I leave. "In this sort of situation, I doubt the military will care to-"

Tohdoh chuckles, cutting me off. "Perhaps not," he says. "Or perhaps they'd like a scapegoat to blame for this situation."

_Ch._ That had occurred to me, but I'd hoped it wouldn't have occurred to him. "There's probably a big line there," I try again. "You should at least go with us that far."

"What's wrong?" Tohdoh asks playfully. "Don't you think Kohzuki-kun is enough to protect you?"

"I do, but..." But Tohdoh's plan is to try and escape through the subway system, which is most likely clogged with fleeing refugees, many of whom are no doubt infected. If he tries to leave on his own, he'll die, and I don't want that to happen. He's important to Suzaku, after all. "With most of the Black Knights' command staff dead, I'll need you if I'm going to have any hope of rebuilding after this."

"You built it up once before without me," he points out. "You can do it again."

I laugh a little. "Perhaps, but I doubt it. I'll need people I trust if that's to happen. More than just Kallen."

"They _do_ say there's safety in numbers," Kallen points out. "Besides, what if he gets hurt? I can't carry him and fight at the same time." She looks at me teasingly as she says this, but I glare at her anyway.

Tohdoh sighs. "Very well," he relents. "But only as far as the line."

"Excellent!" I say happy that I was able to convince him. "Now. How are we supposed to get down from here?"

"We jump. It's only one story."

I stare at him. He sighs. "Right. _I'll _jump down, you'll drop down so I can catch you, and then Kohzuki-kun will come down last."

"Gotcha. Let's do this."

* * *

Every thing's going well until I start preparing to make my drop. I'm easing myself over the edge of the landing when I hear the first moan. I turn my head, startled, and nearly fall, but Kallen catches me and pulls me back up.

By the time I regain my footing and Kallen and I draw our weapons, Tohdoh is surrounded. He does well at first, slicing through the hoard with his _katana _while Kallen and I provide cover fire, but then my gun jams, and Tohdoh is unable to bring is sword around in time to prevent a nearby creature from digging its teeth into his shoulder.

The next few hours pass in a blur. Kallen and I continue firing, pausing only to reload, and Tohdoh continues swinging his sword, right up until he collapses. However, by then, there are only a handful left, which Kallen and I pick off with ease.

After the last one is downed, Kallen trains her gun on Tohdoh, but I grab her wrist. "I'll do it," I say, my voice thick. "I'm the one who messed up."

Kallen nods and lowers her gun. I aim at Tohdoh's head, hesitate a moment, then take a deep breath and squeeze the trigger.

* * *

Neither Kallen nor I say a word as we make our way down the hall to another landing and drop down. Kallen moves towards the exit, but I head back up the hall. "Where are you going?" she asks.

"Get his sword," I answer numbly. "Can't leave it."

"All right," she says, following me.

I'm reaching for the sword, doing my best to ignore the mass of corpses, when Kallen grabs my wrist. "Careful," she says sharply, pointing to one of the severed heads. "You were about to get bitten."

I stare at the head in question. Despite no longer being attached to anything, the jaw is still working. My vision begins to turn gray, but Kallen brings my back with a slap to the face. "If you pass out I'm leaving you," she warns. "I can't fight and carry you at the same time, you know."

"Sorry..."

"Go stand over there," she says, pointing back down the hall. "I'll get what we need."

"Okay," I say absently, heading to the designated spot. I know I should probably feel offended, but I don't feel anything. I have the strange sensation I'm dreaming. I wonder if this is what insanity feels like.

Kallen returns with the sword and bag Tohdoh was carrying, which contains most of our food and ammunition. She hands the sword to me. I grip it tightly as she places her hand on my back and steers me toward the exit. "I wanna go home," I say, still feeling numb.

"I know," Kallen says gently. "I'll get you there. Don't worry."

* * *

We only encounter a few more monsters on the way, all of which Kallen dispatches with ease. The line isn't as long as I expected it to be. It still looks like there will be a few hours wait, but I should definitely be home well before I time I quoted to Nunnally.

Kallen and I get in line. She looks around while I stare glumly at the shoes of the person in front of me. After about an hour or so, I hear someone call "Excuse me!" I look over, feeling drained, as a soldier runs up to us. "Are you Lelouch Lamperouge of Ashford Academy?" he asks me.

I just stare at him blankly, still feeling disconnected from reality, so Kallen answers for me. "Uh, yeah, he is," she says. "Sorry, but he's kind of in shock."

The soldier chuckles nervously. "He's not the only one," he says. "Can you two come with me? Major Kururugi has ordered us to let you to the front of the line."

Major Kururugi? That name sounds familiar, but I can't quite... "Suzaku?" I ask. "Suzaku's here? Where?"

"Just follow me."

* * *

At the head of the line are several small groups of soldiers with dogs. Kallen and I are ordered to pass by them before we can see Suzaku. I wonder vacantly as to why they're there, until they start barking at a man at the head of another line, who is dragged away, shouting "I'm a Britannian! You can't do this to me! I'm a Bri-" to a waiting van.

"Oh... I get it," I say with remarkable disinterest. "The dogs sniff out the monster bug."

"Monster bug?" our escort repeats to himself, then laughs. "Oh, I get it! That's clever. 'Monster bug'. Heh." He chuckles a bit more, then says "That's right."

"Where are you taking them?" Kallen asks.

"I'm sorry, but that's classified," the soldier says, leading us to a trailer and knocking on the door. "Major!" he calls. "I brought them!"

The door opens and Suzaku pokes his head out. "Lelouch!" he cries happily. "Kallen! Oh, thank God!" He ushers us inside, thanks the soldier, and closes the door. "I'm so glad you're okay!" he says, motioning for us to sit down. "When Nunnally told me where you were..." Suzaku shakes his head. "What were you _doing_ there? And where'd you get a _katana_?"

"Where's Nunnally?" I demand. "I wanna see her."

"She's at home. Jus-"

He's cut off by the sound of an authoritative voice announcing over the radio _"Attention all personnel! The contagion has spread to the Settlement! An outbreak has been reported at Ashford Private Academy! I repeat: An outbreak has been reported at Ashford Private Academy!"_

_

* * *

RIP Ohgi, Rakshata, Inoue, Tohdoh, and a bunch of other people whose names I didn't mention._


	2. Chapter 2

_1: I went back and made some editz to the first chapter, because a few people complained about Lelouch being too wimpy before. Just so's ya know._

_2: Someone requested that I give out "wall scrolls" á la _180 Days _and _How to be Scary_, but after giving it some thought, I've decided against it. I'm going to start phasing out the free "gifts" at the end of each chapter, because I'm sick of people who think they're clever, witty, and original asking when they're going to get their things (or, in the case of the douche who made me make my mind up about this, demanding them. That bastard even gave me a "deadline". I don't care that he was kidding. That was rude and he's an ass)._

_3: Just to clear up some confusion: The beginning of this fic takes place between episodes 20 and 21, which is why Suzaku's shoulders are chip-free._

CHAPTER TWO

"If you keep fainting like that, you're going to end up with brain damage," Kallen says when I wake up.

"Shut up," I mutter, sitting up and looking around. The trailer, which was empty save for Kallen, Suzaku, and myself when I passed out, is now full of refugees, none of which seem to be Nunnally. There are a few sniffer dogs lying around as well, including one at my feet, but they're not barking at anyone. I take that to be a good sign. "What happened?" I ask.

"A group of zombies attacked the barricade," she answers quietly. "Suzaku saved as many people as he could, but..."

"And Nunnally?" I ask. The dog at my feet barks once and smiles up at me, tongue hanging from its mouth.

Kallen sighs. "Suzaku wanted to go to Ashford, but he was ordered to remain at his post. Another team got sent into the school."

"And _Nunnally_?" I asked again. The dog barks again and stands up, resting its front paws on my lap. I reach out absently to scratch it behind its ears as Kallen answers.

"Nunnally is fine," Kallen says. The dog turns its head to smile at her. "She's hiding in the circulation system with some other students and faculty members, including the rest of the student council."

"You're sure?"

"Yeah. I just got off the phone with her."

"I see..." I muse, thinking. "What's with this dog?"

Kallen smirks a bit. "Check the collar," she says.

"Why?"

"You'll see."

I comply, frowning. "What the..." I say, then laugh, startled. "Well, that explains things." The tag says the dog's name is "Nunnally." "I wonder who named her."

"The dog's male. Suzaku said its probably his trainer's name, since that's the tradition," Kallen explains. "You kept calling your sister's name while you were sleeping, so he came over here."

"Hmmm..." I say, studying the dog's face. On close inspection, he looks nothing like my sister. "Have you slept at all?" I ask Kallen. She shakes her head. "Well, do so now," I order, standing up. "I'm going to go talk to Suzaku."

"All right. Nunna-boy, up." The dog jumps into the space I just vacated and rests his head in Kallen's lap. I smile a bit and head into the cab.

"Hey," I say, taking the passenger's seat.

"Hey," Suzaku says, staring fixedly at the unmoving line of cars before us. "How are you feeling?"

"Much better. Where are we not going?"

Suzaku smiles a bit, but it looks forced. "The base," he answers, the smile fading. "Did you meet the dog?"

"Yeah. He's taking a nap with Kallen."

"He's a good dog," Suzaku says distantly, still staring forward. "He protected a lot of people."

"Really?" I ask, frowning. I don't like the look on his face, or the tone in his voice. "Are you all right?" I ask. "Do you want me to drive?"

"No. This is my duty."

"No one would mind if you let me take the wheel. It's not like we're going anywhere."

"I have to do my duty."

I let my gaze drift from his pale face to his hands, which are clutching the steering wheel so tightly his knuckles are white. "Suzaku-" I begin, but he cuts me off.

"This is my duty!" he snaps. "I have an obligation to see my duty through to the end!"

"Okay, first of all, stop saying 'duty'," I say. "And second of all, you're not going to do anyone any favors by breaking the steering wheel. Let me take over and get some rest. I'll wake you up when we get moving again."

Suzaku hesitates a moment, then slowly loosens his grasp. We switch places and I glance out the driver's side window. I had been wondered why Suzaku didn't just have up get out and walk, but that question is quickly answered. There are zombies wandering between the rows of cars, and more reaching out through some of the windows ahead to grab the few living pedestrians either stupid or foolhardy enough to try going on foot.

My frown deepens. If we can't drive and can't walk, how are we supposed to get to the base? I imagine the military is doing _something_ (as much as it pains me to admit it, the Britannian forces aren't completely incompetent), but if so, they're too far away for me to see what.

Suzaku snorts beside me and I glance over. He's already fallen asleep, his mouth hanging open. I sigh and turn my attention back tot he road. I wish I had a book to read, but all of my books are either in my room or in the bad with my street clothes, which I imagine I'll never see again.

I sigh again. Now that I think of it, I feel a sense of loss for my bag. I really liked the jacked I'd left in it, and I was enjoying the book I'd brought (a collection of epic poetry I'd managed to buy used from the public library last month). It wouldn't be that difficult to replace either of those items, but I don't like spending money on things I've already paid for. It's depressing.

My phone rings, startling me. I pull it out of my pocket and check the caller ID before answering. "Hello, Nunnally," I say, smiling. "How are you doing?"

"I'm okay," Nunnally says, sounding upset. "Where are you right now? Still in Shinjuku?"

"No, I'm in the Settlement. We're stuck in traffic." No need to explain why. "Suzaku has to drop some refugees off at the army base, and then we'll rescue you, provided you haven't been recused by then."

"All right," she says, sounding relieved.

"Who else is with you?" I ask, more to keep her on the line than out of any real desire to know.

"Um... Milly, Shirley, Nina, Rivalz, Miss Sayoko, my English and history teachers, and some others that I don't know," she answers musingly. "Oh! And Miss C.C. is here, too!"

_Of course she is,_ I think, feeling strangely irritated. "How are you all? Do you have any supplies?"

"Mm-hm. Some of the others brought canned food, bottled water, and blankets," Nunnally answers. "Miss Sayoko says we should have enough for a couple of days."

"That's good," I say, even though I have no intention of letting her wait that long. Something on the road catches my attention and I look up. A line of soldiers are making their way slowly through the line of cars, picking off the zombies wandering the street and stopping at every car to check the passengers. "I have to go now. Okay, Nunnally?" I tell her, not taking my eyes off the soldiers. "I'll call you back when I get to the base. Take care of yourself, okay?"

"Okay, Lelouch. You, too."

I hang up the phone and watch the soldiers approach. It takes a while, but they eventually reach me.

I roll my window down when I soldier comes alongside. "Are you bitten?" he asks by way of greeting.

"No."

"Is he?"

"No."

"How many passengers?"

I think back a moment. "Thirty-two refugees including myself," I answer before long, "six soldiers including him-" I point to Suzaku with my thumb- "and three sniffer dogs." At the soldier's confused look, I explain the situation.

He reports though his radio, then turns his attention back to me. "I need to ask you a few questions. Please answer them as precisely as possible."

"All right."

"What's you name?"

"Lelouch Lamperouge."

"Birth date?"

"December 5, 1999."

"Address?"

I recite it for him. He pauses a moment before continuing, and for a second I worry he's going to ask what a Britannian student was doing in the ghetto. Instead, he asks, "Destination?"

"Uh... the army base." I already answered that while I was explaining the dogs.

The soldier smiles apologetically. "Sorry. I've been asking the same questions over and over for the past eight hours, so it's all automatic by now."

"I understand," I say. I don't really, but lying's easier. "Do you need Major Kururugi's information as well? He's in charge here; just taking a nap."

The soldier shakes his head. "No, but I do need to ask all the other civilians onboard. Do you mind?"

"No. I'll open the door for you."

* * *

The soldier finishes his task quickly and instructs us to abandon the trailer and make the rest of the trip on foot. I wake Suzaku up (Kallen was awakened by the soldier earlier) and we file out of the vehicle. Before we head out, Suzaku breaks us up into six groups, each led by one of the soldiers. The other group's take off, but ours hangs back. in response to one of our group mate's question, Suzaku explains that he wants to bring up the rear, "just in case".

Ever since I was a child, I've always hated it when a member of the military uses the phrase "just in case". I my experience, ever time they do it, the worst-case scenario is all but guaranteed to happen.

I frown as we finally begin following the others.

* * *

We brought Nunnally (the dog) with us, which quickly turns out to be both a blessing and a curse: a blessing because he leads us around the cars containing zombies the soldiers missed, and a curse because he keeps wrapping his leash around my legs. At first, Suzaku wants to take out the remaining zombies as we pass them, but Kallen reminds him that our priority is delivering the others to the base intact. "They'll come back for them," she points out, "and I doubt anyone who's managed to last this long would be stupid enough to walk past the cars with the grabby hands."

Suzaku seems unconvinced, but acquiesces anyway. I keep a close eye on him as we make our way down the street. I'm temped to step in and take direct control of the group, but I believe his sense of responsibility for these people and the only things keeping his sanity (however shakily) intact right now. That's not going to stop me from gently prodding him in the right direction, but I need to be careful.

"Lelouch," Kallen whispers, leaning in to keep the others from overhearing us. "If our group gets separated from the others, I think you should take charge."

I look at her out of the corner of my eye, smirking a bit. Thinking the same thing, huh? "If it comes to that, I will," I assure her. "However, only as a last resort, and never by force."

Kallen nods, though she still looks unsure, and pulls back. I watch her for a moment longer, then turn my attention back to Suzaku. He seems fine, talking with and smiling at another member of our group, a little girl who cheerfully introduced herself as "Yu-chan." However, I can tell it's all false. The skin around his eyes is too tight, and there are too many teeth in that smile.

I shift my gaze, studying everyone else. They all seem stressed. I wonder how much of that comes naturally from his situation, and how much is being absorbed from our leader _pro tempore. _I tighten both my mouth and my grip on Nunnally's leach. If the worst _does_ happen and we get separated, leaving Suzaku in charge is not an option. If I do, the others will become increasingly anxious until internal strife tears us apart. _However, taking command myself might not be the best course of action,_ I think, surveying the rest once more. I am the only Britannian in the goup, and the others might not want to follow me because of it. Should I put Kallen in command and guider her along? There are problems inherant in that course as well.

I continue debating the dilemma, turning each possibility over and over in my head, until the sound of barking interrupts my thoughts. All four sniffer dogs have stopped moving, the hair on their haunches standing at attention. I glance east, the direction they're facing, and spot a crowd of walking corpses heading straight for us. I wonder if they communicate with each other, or if they just happen to head towards the same stimulation.

I call to Suzaku, who is still heading forward, seemingly oblivious to what's going on around him. The sound of his name brings him around, however, and he turns to face me. "What is it?" he asks tiredly.

"Trouble," I say, pointing.

He looks. "Oh..." he says. "Um-"

"Oh for the love of..." I mutter to myself. Looks like I'm going to have to go with the direct command option. "Everybody, listen up!" I call, and the others turn their attention to me. So far, so good. "If you're not able to fight, fall between the cars and keep your head down! Otherwise, get ready!" To my immense satisfaction, they follow my orders without hesitation, soldiers included. I notice Suzaku fumbling for his gun, roll my eyes, and push him in between the cars with the kids. "Stay there," I snap at him, then take Tohdoh's sword from where I've been carrying it on my back and shove it into his arms. "Hold this."

That out of the way, I turn my attention back to the combatants. "Uh... You," I say, picking a man at random.

"My name's Hojo."

"Right. Mr. Hojo, gather the dogs and put them with the others."

"Why?"

_Crap_. It's just my luck that I'd have to go and pick the troublemaker right when things were going so well. "They might get in the way," I explain, hoping against hope that would be enough for him.

"No, I mean why should I do what you tell me."

Of course. "Because if you don't, we'll all die."

"Understandable, but why do I have to do what _you specifically_ tell me?"

I close my eyes, my head beginning to pound. "Can we discuss this later?" I ask. "You know, when we're not dead. Kallen, get the damn dogs."

* * *

Stupid Hojo. Stupid, stupid Hojo!

Thanks to him questioning my authority before I had a chance to really establish it, the refugees ended up panicking and scattering to the four winds, leaving just a handful of us left, most of whom are kids.

I do a quick head count. In addition to myself, Kallen, and Suzaku, there are two dogs (including our favorite Mr. Nunnally), three kids between the ages of about three to approximately nine, a young soldier no more than an year or two older than me, and that bastard Hojo. "What are _you_ looking at?" he snaps.

It crosses my mind to accuse him for this mess, but I keep my mouth shut. He may have been the one to sow the seed of panic, but I was in charge, so it was my responsibility to keep everyone together. "Nothing," I say bitterly, going to help Suzaku. He fell asleep at some point and won't wake up, but a cursory examination reveals to sighs of a bite, so I throw his arm over my shoulder and drag him to his feet. After a backwards glance at Kallen, who's got the dogs on one hand and Yu-chan in the other, I head off down the street, the others joining me without a word.

Hojo doesn't follow.

* * *

_RIP Suzaku's sanity and a couple dozen refugees._


	3. Chapter 3

CHAPTER THREE

When we arrive at the base, one of the soldiers leads the others to a first aid station while Kallen and I head off in search of news about Nunnally. "I wonder if Suzaku will be all right," Kallen muses, looking back in the direction the rest of our group headed.

"Hmm?" I ask, looking around. This last time I was inside this base, it was being run by the Japanese, and despite the... less than ideal circumstances, this is a rare opportunity to get a new feel for the place. After all, I'm not going to let a little thing like the zombie apocalypse stop me from having my revenge on Britannia.

Naturally, most of the areas are blocked off, but I have yet to meet a barrier my Geass can't break. I'll just have to come back later and-

A large hand suddenly settles on my shoulder, breaking me out of my thoughts. "You kids can't be wandering around here," the owner of the hand says. "You need to return to the front and-" He stops suddenly as I turn to face him. He's a muscular man with a large scar leading from his forehead down the bridge of his nose. I stiffen up. I'd know that face anywhere, and justging from his surprise at seeing me, he likely knows mine just as well.

General Darlton seems to be having trouble finding his voice, so I hurry to beat him to the punch. There are only so many secrets I will allow spilled in one day. "Oh, a soldier!" I say, feigning relief. "Excuse me, sir, but I'm looking for my sister. You wouldn't happen to know if a girl named Nunnally Lamperouge is among the refugees here, would you?"

"If she's here, she'll be at the first aid station," Darlton says, regaining his composure. "He turns me and Kallen around and starts marching us back the way we came. "Which, incidentally, is where you're supposed to be. Now let's go."

* * *

I sigh and take a seat on one of the free cots. We've searched everywhere around here and there's no sign of Nunnally the human (Nunnally the dog is just fine, and greeted Kallen and I cheerfully as soon as we walked in the room). There's a handful of Ashford students who managed to escape before the school was overrun, but they couldn't tell us anything about how my sister is doing.

I lie down and pull my cell out of my pocket. I'd promised to call Nunnally as soon as we arrived, only to find out that the cell phone towers are no longer functioning. I couldn't find out any details, but I suppose I should just be happy they worked as long as they did.

"Hey, look who I found," Kallen said, heading towards me with Suzaku.

I sit up. "How are you feeling?" I ask him.

"Better," Suzaku says, smiling tiredly. "Sorry about before."

"It's okay," Kallen answers for me. "It would be hypocritical of him to get mad at you for spacing out."

I frown at her. "I wasn't going to get mad," I say, then pat the cot next to me. "Take a seat," I offer. "Nunnally! Down."

The dog climbs off the cot as Kallen and Suzaku take their seats at either side of me. "You really like that dog, don't you?" Suzaku asks.

"I like all dogs."

"Oh, yeah..." Suzaku stares at Nunnally for a long moment, until the dog jumps up and starts licking his face. "Agh! Down, boy! Down!"" he cries, and Kallen and I laugh. Nunnally stops and lies down at our feet. "I wonder if Arthur is okay?" Suzaku murmurs.

"Who cares?" I ask, and Kallen smacks me over the back of my head. "Ow! What was that for?"

"Be nice."

Suzaku smiles a bit. "It's all right," he says. "I'm sure he was just kidding."

I wasn't, but... "Of course I was just kidding. What kind of person do you take me for?"

Kallen rolls her eyes. "Have you managed to find out anything about the others?" she asks Suzaku.

He shakes his head. "No. After all, I've been resting here since we arrived," he points out. "However, I did hear a rumor." He leans in close to keep anyone else from overhearing him. "Apparently, Princess Cornelia has been injured, so Euphy's in charge right now. Some of the soldier think it might be her fault the situation got out of hand so quickly."

I frown. That's unexpected. How could Cornelia have gotten hurt? I know for a fact the Black Knights haven't done anything since the outbreak started- after all, to the best of my knowledge, Kallen and I are the only ones left. And if Cornelia really _is_ injured, why would they put Euphemia in charge? Sure, she's the sub-Viceory, but she's mostly just a figurehead. Darlton is obviously find, and I doubt anyone would object to him being placed in charge in this sort of situation.

I open my mouth to voice some of these concerns, but before I can, Darlton enters the room. He looks around for a moment, then heads straight towards us and stops right in front of me. "Princess Euphemia wants to see you," he says. I point to Suzaku. "No, you," he insists. I point to Kallen, and he sighs. "Will you stop that?"

I exchange looks with Suzaku, Kallen, and the dog, then sigh and stand up. "All right," I say. At least it's better than Cornelia.

* * *

After Darlton drops me off, Euphy has him wait outside with the others, who invited themselves along. We then stand there in silence while Euphy gathers her thoughts. After a few minutes, I clear my throat. "Um," I say, and she looks down.

"Have you heard about Cornelia?" she asks, almost too softly for me to hear.

"Suzaku said there's a rumor she's been injured."

Euphy lowers her head even more. "That's close," she says, her voice beginning to waver. "The truth is-" Her voice breaks, and she covers her face.

I look away. "Got it," I say softly. There's no way of knowing if she was bitten or if it was due to the severity of whatever injuries she managed to accrue- and, to be honest, I don't really _want_ to know- but the end result is clear from Euphemia's behavior. Cornelia is either dead, or nearly so.

I wait quietly until she calms down a little. "Sorry about that," she says, sniffing and swiping at her eyes with her sleeve.

"There's nothing to apologize for."

Euphy tries to smile, and this time she almost manages it. "Maybe I should've let Darlton take over," she says. "Then things wouldn't have gotten this bad."

"You don't know that," I say, still not looking at her. "We've never had to deal with this sort of situation before, so there's no way of knowing for sure how to proceed."

"No," Euphy agrees. She stands up and sighs. "Still, Lelouch, that brings us to the reason I wanted to speak with you." She pauses again. I wait patiently until she continues. "As you know," she finally says, her tone almost eerily formal, "with the Viceroy incapacitated, the burden of leadership naturally falls to me, the sub-Viceroy." I wonder if that's the argument she used to get the burden of leadership from Darlton. For that matter, I wonder why she even bothered. It's not like her.

Euphy looks down again. "I messed up," she says. "The outbreak spread past the barriers we set up, and now it's rapidly consuming all of Area 11. I've tried contacting the homeland for help, but they said it was too dangerous to send anyone."

"So, we've been cut-off," I comment. "Typical. They're just going to wait for us all to die, or to get it under control ourselves, I imagine."

Euphy nods. "That's pretty much word for word what they said. So, I think that the best thing for me to do right now is to hand the reins over to someone more capable." She moves around the desk to stand right in front of me. "Lelouch," she says, looking up at me pleadingly. "I know I have no right to ask this of you, and I'll understand completely if you refuse, but-"

"Euphemia," I say, cutting her off. "I don't care about Area 11." She seems surprised by this, so I explain. "All I want to do is rescue Nunnally."

"Huh? Nunnally?"

I nod. "She's trapped inside Ashford Academy. And from what I hear, the school is completely overrun. The group she's with has enough food and water to last them for a few days, but time is running out. I have to-"

Much to my surprise, Euphy laughs. "What's so funny?" I demand.

Euphy returns to the desk, still chuckling to herself. "If that's how it is, then don't you think it's in your best interest to take my offer?" she asks.

"Huh? What are you-?"

"Ashford Academy is a low-profile target right now," she explains, her back turned to me. "As acting Viceroy, I can't risk sending in troops to a hot spot. However, if _you _were Viceroy..."

"Euphy, you-"

Euphy turns around to face me, frowning stubbornly. "Don't get me wrong, Lelouch," she says. "I hate doing this to you. However, I have to think about what's best for _everyone_ in the Area, and I believe that that's _you_."

Euphemia and I glare at each other stubbornly for a moment, until I look away, sighing. "Fine," I relent. "I'll take your offer. But once all this is over, you owe me. Big time."

"Deal!" Euphy says cheerfully, then heads for the door. "I'll got tell General Darlton to prepare a rescue operation. Good luck, Viceroy!"

I sigh deeply as the door whisks shut behind her. That girl is simply too much.

* * *

"We've noticed that the infected-"

"Zombies."

"Pardon me?" General Darlton asks, surprised at being cut off.

"This isn't _28 Days Later._ Just call them zombies," I order.

"Yes, Your Highness," Darlton says, bowing. "Anyway, as I was saying, we've observed that the inf- the zombies seem to be attracted to loud noises. Therefore, the plan is to have a unit of Sutherlands-"

"Don't you think that's a little overkill?" I ask. "In case you haven't heard, we've been cut off. We can't afford to be wasting fuel like that. Four should be enough."

"Yes, sir," Darlton says. "I gather from your interjection you've already figured out the plan?"

"I think so. You want to have the Knightmares broadcast loud music or the like over their external speakers, then send a strike team in through the roof to find the students while the zombies are distracted. Am I warm?"

"You're boiling hot, my lord."

"Good," I say, then stand up. "The strike team will consist of Kallen, Suzaku, and myself. I'll leave you to track down four free pilots. I'll trust Euphemia to remain here and hold down the fort while I'm gone."

"But, Viceroy!" an officer whose name I didn't bother to learn protests, running forward. "It's too dangerous to-"

"Only faculty and student council members can get access the area where the students are hiding," I explain. "On top of that, I know more shortcuts and hidden passageways through the school than anyone else. Kallen and Suzaku are more than skilled enough to protect me, so there's no need for concern."

I clap my hands, signifying that the conversation is over. "Get ready. We leave in two hours."

* * *

After helping Darlton pick out suitable music to use as a distraction, I return to my new office to find Kallen sitting at my desk, glaring at me.

"Aren't you supposed to be getting ready for the operation?" I ask to cover up my surprise, reaching up to finally remove the swearing I've been wearing since yesterday. Out of morbid curiosity, I sniff it, then cringe and toss it into a corner.

Kallen stays quiet for a moment, studying me. I follow suit, waiting patiently for her to tell me why she's angry. I have a hunch, but it's better to keep quiet rather than risk making her angrier by revealing new information. Finally, she speaks. "I seem to be learning a lot about you lately,: she says, her voice in the rough vicinity of Absolute Zero.

"Seems so," I agree.

Kallen stands up, revealing a pistol she's been hiding under the desk. "Tell me, Lelouch," she says, training the gun on me. "What' a prince of Britannia doing leading an anti-Britannian resistance group? Bear in mind that if I don't like your answer..." She trails off, lifting the gun higher.

I don't say anything for a moment. Would Kallen actually shoot me? Two days ago, I'd have said "no", but a lot has changed since then.

"Well?" Kallen snaps. "Are you going to answer, or am I going to shoot you?"

"And then what?" I ask calmly. "The only reason the Britannian are staging this rescue operation is because I ordered them as Viceroy. If you kill me, they'll likely call it off."

"The Knightmares launched five minutes ago," Kallen says. "I heard it while I was waiting for you."

"And?" I snort. "It's not too late to call them back, which is what will happen if two-thirds of the strike team turns up dead."

"'_Two'_-thirds?"

I smirk. "You're threatening to assassinate the Viceroy in the middle of a Britannian military base. If you're _lucky, _they'll shoot you on sight."

Kallen looks unsure for a moment, then sighs and lowers the gun. "Fine," she relents. "But this isn't over! I expect an answer from you when we get back."

"Very well. Now, let's go. Nunnally is waiting."


	4. Chapter 4

**WARNING: **Something horrible happens at the end of this chapter. If you don't like horrible things, I would advise you to skip the last scene. You'll know you've reached it when Lelouch starts talking about an open door.

CHAPTER FOUR

I stare out the open side of the helicopter taking us to Ashford Academy, nervously toying with the strap kepping me from flying out of said helicopter. The town rushing by below us is a mess. Every road is completely clogged with stopped cars, and several buildings have somehow caught fire as well. We're too high to see them, but the streets are undoubtedly clogged with the undead.

_I suppose getting those fires put out should be my first priority,_ I think absently. _It'll be problematic if they go out of control. After that, I'll focus on clearing the roads so-_

"Hey, Lelouch?" Suzaku asks suddenly, breaking me out of my thoughts, He has to should to be heard above the rushing winds and the din of the helicopter blades. "Why are you being so careful with the sakuradite? Japan has plenty, you know."

"And it's used for more than just powering Knightmares," I point out, shouting as well. "Medical equipment and rescue vehicles take priority! Plus, for all I know, the mines could be overrun. It's batter to be careful with it for now."

Suzaku nods, apparently satisfied, and turns his head to look out the side. I glance at Kallen, who hasn't said a word since we left my office. She's sitting with her head lowered, staring intently at her clasped hands. I briefly consider asking her what she's thinking about, then decide against it. I don't really feel like shouting any more right now, and she probably wouldn't tell me, anyway.

Putting thought of her out of my mind, I return my attention to the city below.

* * *

A short time later, the helicopter sets down on the roof of the clubhouse and we scramble out. "I'll be back in one hour!" the pilot calls. "I need to go pick up some survivors from a nearby mall!"

I give him a thumbs-up to confirm I heard, and he lifts off as Suzaku, Kallen, and I head for the entrance to the building. Once the sound of the chopper fades away, I can faintly heard Iron Maiden playing outside of the school, and I grind my teeth anxiously. _Is that really the loudest they can get?_

We stop in front of the door and I put my hand on the handle. I draw my pistol, then turn to see Kallen and Suzaku following suit. I take a deep breath, steeling myself to barge in, then release the handle and move to the edge of the roof.

For a moment, it looks like the ground itself is moving, then I realize what it really is-zombies, crowded nearly shoulder-to-shoulder and completely filling the courtyard. The gates have been sealed with a metal plate, but that's not stopping the zombies in the front from trying to knock it down to get to the source of the music. I spot a few faculty members, and some people who seem to be from outside the school, but students make up the overwhelming majority.

I back away from the fence, biting my lip in an attempt the stifle the urge to vomit, and return to the other two. "It seems most of them are outside," I report, "but we should still be on our guard. Let's go."

* * *

It takes all my willpower to refrain from running as we make our way downstairs. The elevator isn't working, which came as a surprise to no one, and the way our footsteps echo in the otherwise empty stairwell and hallway sends shivers down my spine. I can still hear the moaning of the zombies and the music blasting from the Knightmares outside, but the school still feels emptier than it's ever been before, and I've been here when it was actually empty. Even though I'd never believe such silly nonsense, horror stores about haunted schools run through my head.

I remember reading once that the word "haunt" has a number of definitions, aside from the traditional one related to ghosts and goblins. _"A feeding place for animals,"_ I think, and my arms break out in gooseflesh. _By that definition, I suppose the entire country is haunted._

I tighten my mouth, trying to will those thoughts away. I'm Zero, the man destined to bring down the mighty Britannian Empire! It doesn't suit me to be getting spooked from something as silly as a deserted school clubhouse.

Still, I find myself wishing either Suzaku or Kallen will say something- anything!- to break the silence. There's little hope of _that_, however. I made it quite clear to them before we left the base that they were to refrain from making any unnecessary noise in the halls of the school. There's no guarantee that there aren't zombies still trapped inside somewhere.

I stop suddenly, realizing where we are. My room is down this hallway. I seriously doubt there's anything in there I need, but...

"Wait here," I whisper to the others. "I'll be back in a moment."

"Where are you going?" Suzaku asks.

"My room. I'll be right back. Just wait here."

"We should come with you! What if-"

"'What if' nothing. No one goes there but me and Sayoko-" And C.C. "-and Sayoko is with Nunnally. I should be safe. I'll be fine."

Suzaku nods his assent, still looking unconvinced.

I turn down the hallway, stopping in front of my door ten feet away. I glance back at Suzaku and Kallen- the former of whom looks a little embarrassed- the punch in my code to unlock the door ans step inside.

I close the door behind me and look around. There really isn't anything I need in here, but I couldn't resist the temptation to stop by, anyway.

I wander over to my desk and start rummaging through the drawers, more to give myself the illusion of looking for something than actually doing so. And who knows? I might find something useful after all.

I accidentally pull one of the bottom drawers too hard and end up yanking it out all the way. I cry out, more in surprise than pain, as it lands on my foot. I kick the (empty) drawer away, muttering the sorts of words they don't teach you in language courses under my breath.

The door opens and Suzaku and Kallen run in, looking alarmed. "What is it?" Suzaku demands. "What happened?"

"Nothing," I answer, embarrassed. I pick up the drawer and start to put it back, then stop. There's something small and dark on the floor under the desk, near the wall. "Hm?" I ask aloud, genuinely surprised. Sayoko is usually thorough about cleaning, so how could she have missed something like that?

I set the drawer aside and reach in towards the object. After searching around for a moment, I manage to grasp it and pull it out.

I stand up straight, frowning as I examine the object in my hand. It's a glass figure of a hooded individual stilling slumped over an armored horse. It's dusty and slightly chipped, but I recognize it immediately: It's part of a collectible chess set my babysi- tutor gave me as a gift before I started at Ashford. I'd kept the set displayed proudly on a shelf over my desk until one day about an year ago when I accidentally knocked it on the floor. I'd managed to find every piece but this one, and after a few hours of desperate searching, I'd given up and boxed the rest up.

I brush some dust off with my thumb, temporarily lost in memories of my babysi- tutor. Even though he didn't play the game himself, he liked to collect collectible chess sets based on movies, television shows, and video games. He always kept a few on display in his house, and I often spent the time between lessons just admiring them. I was surprised when he gave me the set this piece was part of, but he'd just laughed it off and told me he could get another one.

The sound of a throat being cleared behind me startles me out of my thoughts and I turn around, sticking the chess piece in my pocket. Kallen and Suzaku are still standing in the doorway, watching me. "Is everything all right?" Suzaku asks.

"Yeah," I answer simply, turning to put the drawer back. That task done, I straighten and clear my throat. "Let's move on."

* * *

"Hey, Lelouch," Suzaku says softly as we continue our way down to the circulation system.

"Suzaku, we talked about personal space before."

"I'm pretty sure you're thinking of Milly."

"Oh, yeah."

"Anyway, what's with Kallen?" he continues. "You two seemed to be getting along earlier, but now she's ignoring you again."

"Why don't you-" No, wait. That would be a bad idea. "She's probably just tired," I suggest. "We haven't had much time to rest since all this started."

Suzaku nods, satisfied, and backs up.

I turn my attention to the front just in time to catch Kallen watching me over her shoulder. She quickly turns away, and I frown. I'm not looking forward to working this out with her later, but I suppose I have no choice. Maybe I'll get luck and she'll calm down after we save the others.

I take another look at Kallen, taking note of the angry set of her shoulders and the way she keeps clenching and unclenching her fist. I have the sneaking suspicion I won't be so lucky.

* * *

We're almost to the basement when Kallen stops suddenly and puts her arm out, stopping me and Suzaku. Without a word, Suzaku and I tighten our grips on our guns and peer past Kallen to see what put her on her guard.

One of the doors in the hallway ahead is standing open. The three of us exchange a glance, then move forward cautiously. Something crashes to the ground inside the room and we exchange another glance. Kallen and Suzaku nod, then move toward the door, motioning for me to stay put. However, before they reach the room, a little girl wearing the uniform of the elementary division walks out. She takes one look at Kallen and Suzaku standing with their guns trained on her and bursts into tears, throwing her hands in the air. "I'm sorry!" she sobs. "I didn't mean to break it! Please don't shoot me!"

Kallen and Suzaku drop their guns and the three of us hurry to the girl's side. "It's okay," Kallen says gently. "We won't hurt you. Are you okay?"

The girl nods. "I hided- Um, I _hid_ in here when everyone started acting crazy," she explains, then sniffs and tries to smile. "I scraped my foot a little, but I'm okay."

"Well, that's good then" Kallen says, smiling. "Why don't you come with us? We'll keep you safe, okay?"

The little girl nods. "Okay."

The girls turn and start off down the hallway while I glance first at the doorway, then at the little girl. "Hey, um..." I say, holding my and up to stop them.

They look back. "What?" Kallen snaps.

I ignore her, keeping my attention focused on the girl. "What happened to your shoes?" I ask.

She looks down at her bare feet. "I lost them," she answers. "Mikey went crazy and grabbed me and one of 'em came off while I was running away. I took the other one off later 'cause it wasn't even."

"You said you weren't hurt, right?" I ask.

"Huh? Yeah. Mikey didn't hurt me at all."

I point to a few droplets of blood in the doorway. "You're bleeding," I say.

"Huh? Well, I-"

I head to the door and look inside the classroom. It's clubroom for one of the art clubs. Chairs and art supplies are scattered everywhere. I walk into the room and look around. It doesn't take me long to find the most likely source of the girl's wound, and my heart drops.

I'd hoped she'd just cut her ankle on a nail or something, but no. There's a zombie lying in an open cabinet. Not a full zombie, of course. Somehow, it got cut down so only the top half of it's head remained. I'm not even 100% sure if it was originally male of female. However, it's clearly still "alive", since I can see it move it's eyes to look at me as I approach.

I kneel down and look closely at the few teeth it has left, then glance over at a broken stool lying on the ground beside the cabinet. I reach out and carefully pick the zombie up by it's hair, being careful to avoid the teeth. It doesn't have a jaw anymore and can't bite, but I still don't know everything about these. For all I know, a simple scrape could be fatal.

I turn back towards the others and lift the head up so the little girl can see it. "Did you step on this?" I ask.

"Lelouch-" Kallen starts to say angrily, but I cut her off.

"Let me guess," I continue. "You were hiding in one of the cabinets above this counter, heard us coming, and while you were climbing down the stool broke. While trying to catch yourself, your foot went into the cabinet and you scraped your leg on this thing's teeth. Does that sound like what happened?"

The girl looks down and opens her mouth, but Suzaku speaks before she can say anything. "What are you suggesting?" he snaps. "Do you have any idea how ridiculous that sounds? We don't even know how this disease spreads, so how do you know a scrape will-"

"If it was deep enough to draw blood, it was deep enough to infect her," I answer simply. I toss the head aside and walk towards the little girl. "Well?" I ask, looking down at her. "Is that what happened?"

She nods, almost imperceptibly. "I'm sorry," she says, her voice small.

Kallen looks away sadly, but Suzaku seems determined no to get it. "What are you saying?" he asks desperately. "Are you saying that we should kill a little girl? I can't do that! And I can't let _you_ do it, either!"

The girl seems surprised by this. "What? You're gonna kill me? But I didn't do anything bad!"

I sigh and kneel down. "Let me see your foot," I order, thinking of the looking of Ohgi's suspiciously clean bite wound. If the girl is infected, her wound should look similarly pristine. _Of course, if she _did_ scrape her leg on a nail, it'll likely look exactly the same. There was a little bit of blood on that thing's teeth, but that doesn't mean anything. It could have been left over from another victim.  
_

I push the thought out of my head as I examine the scrape on the back of the girl's ankle. It definitely clean, and too wide to have been caused by one of the little nails used to hold the cabinets in this room together. I sigh and settle back on my haunches. "I'm sorry," I say. "It looks like you're infected. Now, we can do this the easy way and kill you now, or we can wait for you to slip into a coma and kill you then. Unfortunately, we have a helicopter to catch, so we can't afford to wait around for the second option."

"We're not doing _either _of those things!" Suzaku protests angrily, glaring at me. "Lelouch! Think about this! You have no way of knowing she's-"

"We already went over this," I snap, my patience wearing thin. "There's no way to fix her, so it's better to just end it now. Or would you prefer for her to suffer first?"

Suzaku stares at me, his mouth moving silently as he tries to think of another argument. "Believe me, Suzaku," I continue before he can. "If I had a choice I wouldn't do this, but it's too dangerous to just leave her alone."

"B-But..." Suzaku protests weakly. "She's a _little girl_!"

"And you think there aren't any little girls out there?" I snap, jumping up and pointing furiously towards the window. "As soon as she was bitten, she may as well have been one of them! We can't drag around a ticking time bomb just to entertain your hypocrisy!"

"Hyp- Hypocrisy?"

"That's right. The hypocrisy of only concerning yourself with the fate of someone because they're standing right in front of you. She's no different than hundreds or even thousands of other people out there right now. The only reason you're getting so worked up about her is because she's here and they're not," I declare, glaring at him. "That's hypocrisy."

Suzaku continues glaring at me for a long moment, then drops his gaze and looks away. "I do care about the others," he mutters.

"No, you don't. It's impossible."

"_Nooooo!"_ the little girl wails, cutting off any further philosophical arguments between us. "I don' wanna die!" She runs over to Suzaku and clutches his clothes, no doubt believing him to be her only hope for survival. "Please, Mister!" she begs, tears in her eyes. "April's a good girl! Don't let him kill me!"

I raise an eyebrow at her while I check to make sure my gun is loaded. _Speaking in third person now? She's really pulling out all the stops, isn't she?_

Suzaku looks at me pleadingly. He must have read something in my face that finally convinced him I have no intention of changing my mind, because he releases the girl's grasp on his clothes and pushes her away gently. "I'm sorry," he says sadly.

"No! _Nooooo!_" the girl shrieks, reaching up to pull at her hair. I train my gun on her and her arms drops. She stares back at me, the fear gone from her eyes to be replaced by nothing more than simple confusion. "Why?" April asks plaintively.

"I don't know," I answer honestly, then pull the trigger.


	5. Chapter 5

CHAPTER FIVE

Neither of us says a word the entire rest of the way to where the students and Nunnally are waiting. I try a few times to get some sort of conversation going, but each attempt fails. Suzaku is quite obviously furious with me, and Kallen is a brick wall, shuffling behind us lost in her own thoughts.

_I did the right thing! _I tell myself. _If we had just left her alone, she would have died in agony! It's better for her this way!_

Oh, but why can't I believe that?

I'm so lost in my thoughts that it actually comes as a surprise to me when we arrive at the elevator leading to the circulation system. We stop and look around for a staircase, but there doesn't seem to be one. _A dead end,_ I think, feeling my chances of saving my sister vanish like smoke. _We were so close, too! I should have made sure to switch on the generator before we came down here!_

I glance at my watch. Thanks to all the detours, it's taken us twenty minutes to get down here, but that still leaves forty minutes until the helicopter returns. The generator is located behind the main building, but there's no way to get there without crossing the courtyard. A quick glance out the window confirms that most of the zombies are still clustered near the gate, but if we try to cross some of the stragglers might notice us and attack.

The generator's not hard to turn on, and Suzaku could probably handle any zombies who happen to notice him, but even he couldn't fight off all of them. Still, am I willing to risk his life on a desperate gamble?

I do a quick survey of my feelings and decide that yes, yes I am. If it's to save Nunnally, I'd risk the entire world. I'll have Suzaku go turn on the generator while Kallen and I-

The sound of straining metal breaks me out of my thoughts and I look up to see Suzaku and Kallen try to force the elevator doors open through brute strength. "What are you doing?" I ask, startled.

"There's a ladder... inside... the elevator shaft... correct?" Kallen asks, her voice straining from the effort. "If we... can get these doors open... we can use it... to climb down."

Of course! Why didn't I think of that? I move to help Kallen, but she shakes her head. "We've almost... got it. Just... wait."

For a moment, I consider arguing, then decide against it. The doors _are_ almost open, after all. Better to save my strength for the climb down.

The two of them finally manage to get the door open, and we hurry inside before they can slam shut again. I glance up and down to check where the elevator is, and spot it a couple of floors beneath us. I start climbing down, hoping- oddly enough- that Kallen doesn't realize I caught a glimpse of her panties when I looked up.

We get off the ladder on top if the elevator. Its stopped at the lowest floor, so we're going to need to get inside if we want out of here.

"Do you think they left the door open?" Suzaku asks, his first words since leaving the art room, but Kallen shakes her head.

"Don't you hear that?" she asks.

We listen closely. I can just hear the sound of moaning and banging coming from inside the carriage. It seems there are some zombies still trapped inside, at least two or three of them judging from the way the banging sounds overlap.

The three of us draw our pistols as one and arrange ourselves around the top hatch. Suzaku pulls it open and after taking a moment to take not of the size of the group (there are four that we can see, but I hear more of them just out of sight) we open fire. It doesn't take long to dispatch the ghouls, and we climb in carefully.

Suzaku and I move to open the doors, but Kallen coughs and reaches up to cover her nose with her sleeve. It's then that I notcie that the small space reeks of blood. The smell is cloying, and for a moment I feel I might vomit.

"Dammit, will you guys help me with this?" Suzaku snaps. "The sooner we get this door open, the sooner we can get out of here!"

Kallen and I do our best to keep our noses and mouths covered with our shirts as we work to help Suzaku pry the doors apart. It doesn't work very well, but we manage to get the doors open and fall out into the hallway before the stench overpowers us.

Kallen and I kneel down in the hallway, retching, while Suzaku drags one of the corpses over to the door to keep it open. I watch him, still on my hands and knees. I'm not looking forward to going back in there, but I suppose we have no choice; it's the only way out of here, after all.

After waiting patiently for Suzaku to finish vomiting into his balled-up jacket, we turn and head down the hallway.

* * *

"Nunnally!" I call out reflexively as soon as I see her.

"Huh? Lelouch? Is that you?"she asks as I run over.

I kneel down beside her and take her hand. "Yeah," I say, smiling. "I'm so glad you're all right."

Nunnally nods a bit in agreement. "I've been worried about you ever since our cells got cut off,"she says. "You haven't been hurt, have you?"

"No, I'm all right. I-"

Someone behind me clears their throat and I turn to see the rest of the student council standing nearby. "I hate to break up your touching reunion," Milly says, "but am I to assume from your arrival that we're saved? Or did you come here just to get trapped with us?"

"Of course not," I say, standing up. "There's a helicopter on it's way back to pick us up. We need to get to the roof first, though."

"I figured."

"Um, Lelouch?" Kallen says, waving to get my attention. "Could you come over here for a second?"

"What is it?"

"Just come here." Kallen moves away from the others and stands waiting for me with her arms crossed. I head over, fighting the urge to roll my eyes.

"Lelouch," Kallen says softly once I reach her, "we're not going to be able to fit all these people on the helicopter. That kind is only designed to hold ten people, maximum."

I turn to do a quick headcount. There are twenty-two people altogether, including myself, Kallen, and Suzaku. Even if we try to cram a few more people than the helicopter can safely hold, there's no way to collect everyone in a single trip. "We'll just have to send a group of eleven, then have the helicopter return for the rest," I conclude. It's perhaps not the safest plan, but it's the best we can do.

Kallen sighs, sounding exasperated. "Do you have any idea how long that will take?" she demands. "I know the roof is safe and all, but these kids have been down here for days already. What if they panic and fight over who gets to go in the first trip?"

"Then we'll send the youngest eleven students with the first trip, and the remainders can wait with the eight of us."

"Eight?"

I count off on my fingers. "Me, you, Suzaku, Milly, Shirley, Nina, Rivalz, Miss Sayoko, and C.C. Nunnally's going with the first group."

Kallen nods, apparently having figured as much. "And how exactly are you planning on getting Nunnally to the roof in the first place?" she asks. "We can't take her wheelchair up the elevator shaft, and she can't exactly climb on her own, either."

"I'll carry her."

"And will you also lift her up over your head so someone else can pull her through the top hatch?"

"Then Suzaku will carry her that far, and I'll carry her the rest of the way." I look at Kallen sharply. "No matter what I have to do, I'm not leaving my sister behind."

Kallen sighs. "Okay, whatever," she says, apparently deciding it's not worth fighting over.

"Are you lovebirds don't talking yet?" C.C. calls. "The clock is ticking, you know."

"'Lovebirds?' Who talks like that any more?"

"I do. You got a problem with that?"

I give her a dirty look. "We were discussing about how to get everyone out of here," I explain. "Now that I think of it, though, we can just leave you behind. You're just a waste of space, anyway."

"Lelouch, that's mean!" Nunnally scolds.

"I'm sorry," I say, more to her than to C.C. I head over to Nunnally and move to pick her up. "We have to climb up an elevator shaft to get out of here, so I'll have to carry you, okay?"

"Oh, um..." Nunnally says, looking nervous. "Is it okay if Miss Sayoko or Miss C.C. carries me instead?"

"Why?" I ask, confused and a little hurt. "Are you mad at me for taking so long to rescue you? Because if you are, I'm-"

Nunnally shakes her head. "No! It's not that at all!" she says quickly. "It's just..." she hesitates a little, her face turning red. "It's embarrassing."

"I used to carry you all the time when we were kids," I point out. "Why is it embarrassing _now_?"

"Um, well... It's a girl thing."

"Huh? _Oh_!" I blush furiously and back up. "Sorry."

"It's okay."

"So what's the plan, Boss?" Milly asks, breaking the awkward silence.

"Get to the roof without dying."

Milly nods. "That's a good plan. I approve."

"Glad to have your approval. Let's go."

* * *

We're two floors down from the roof when one of the girls at the back of the group suddenly shrieks.

The rest of us stop and turn to look just in time to see a different girl crumple to the ground, blood spurting from her bitten neck. I watch in horror as the zombie makes a grab for the girl who'd screamed. _How... How didn't anyone hear that thing moan?_ I think, panicked.

Someone pushes me aside rougly and a gun goes off right next to my head, downing the zombie and instant before it's teeth can close over the girl's arm. It's then that I find the answer to my question: the zombies lungs are hanging out of an open gash on it's chest. With no lungs, I suppose they can't moan.

There's no time to reflect on this new information, however. I can hear the moans of more zombies, seemingly from everywhere. "Everybody, run!" I snap, no longer to keep quiet now that there's no point. "Get to the roof as fast as you can!" I have to fight an insane urge to shout _"Get to da choppah!" _but I somehow manage it. "Go! Go! Go!" As I shout, I push students toward the staircase. Suzaku takes point as they flee down the hallway, using Tohdoh's sword to slice effortlessly through any ghouls who emerge from the classrooms to try and cut them off.

Kallen and I are the last to start running, keeping to the group's flanks and doing our best to pick of any zombies Suzaku misses. We're halfway up the stairs when Kallen suddenly stops running and drops to her knees.

I stop as well. "What's wrong?" I demand. The staircase is blissfully clear and we've put a good distance between ourselves and our pursuers, but it's only a matter of time before they catch up.

"...me," Kallen says almost inaudibly, her head lowered.

"What?"I ask. The group ahead of us stops, apparently taking note of our actions.

"What's wrong?" Suzaku calls, but I shake my head and kneel down next to Kallen. "What did you say?" I ask again.

"I said, 'go on without me!'" she snaps

_What?_ "What are you talking about?" I snap. "There's no way in Hell I'd-"

"You found your sister, so just go," Kallen says miserably, cutting me off.

"Lelouch..." Suzaku calls nervously. The moans are getting louder, both from behind and in front.

"Go on ahead," I order. "We'll catch up."

"Have you lost your mind?" C.C. snaps. "We can't just-"

"Getting the students to safety is still our mission objective," I say, not breaking eye contact with Suzaku. "We'll catch up, so just go ahead."

Suzaku nots and turns, motioning for the others to follow. After a moment, C.C. follows suit, though likely only because she was the one who ended up with Nunnally.

"Lelouch..." Nunnally says, looking worried as they turn to go.

"Don't worry, Nunnally," I say, forcing a smile. "We'll be along soon."

C.C. hurries to join the rest and I turn my attention back to Kallen, who is staring bleakly at the step in front of her. "Why?" she asks me, her voice small.

"I should be asking you that. What are you thinking?"

Kallen doesn't speak for a long moment. When she finally does, I have to lean in close to hear her. "Everyone's dead."

"Huh?" I ask, surprised.

"Everyone's dead," she repeats, her voice flat and emotionless. "Ohgi, Tamaki, Sugiyama, Inoue... All dead."

I don't say anything for a moment, trying to think of something. "Not everyone," I try. "Milly, Shirley, and Rivalz-"

"That's not what I mean and you know it!" Kallen snaps loudly, then her voice drops again. "The Black Knights are dead."

"We don't know that," I argue. "Not everyone was at base when this all started. A few of them could be out there somewhere. Besides, I'm alive, aren't I? And so are you. The two of us are plenty to-"

Kallen shakes her head. "There's no point," she says. "With this current catastrophe, and the Homeland abandoning us, Japan doesn't need the Black Knights anymore."

I open my mouth to say something- what, exactly, I don't know- but she continues. "Japan doesn't need the Black Knights," she repeats, "and Zero doesn't need me."

"What do you mean? Of course I-"

"Don't bother lying. There's no point." Kallen smiles a little, and I feel a shiver run down my spine. This isn't the Kallen I know. She should be stronger than this. If she breaks now, what chance do the rest of us have?

Kallen continues, heedless of my growing concern. "Zero is the viceroy now. He has the whole of the military to protect him. And the Guren is lost deep in infested territory." That terrifying smile fades, and I feel a moment of relief. "Go," she says. "Leave me and catch up with your sister."

"Not without you," I say, prying she doesn't detect the fear in my voice. I climb to the stair beneath her and turn her to face me. "Kallen," I say, gripping her biceps and looking her in the eyes. I have never wished to be able to use my Geass more than I do at this moment. "You're wrong. I do need you."

"You're lying."

"_No, _I'm _not,_" I insist. The zombies are much closer now. I can hear them shuffling at the bottom of the steps. I resist looking at them, instead keeping my gaze fixed on Kallen. "There's no time to convince you of that, but believe this much at least: I am not leaving here without you. If they means they get both of us, then so be it."

"But Nunna-"

"If I abandon you now, I'll never be able to face Nunnally again," I say, smiling wryly. My smile fades as quickly as it came. "Kallen, _please_."

Kallen's eyes dart over my shoulder. The zombies are close enough that I can actually feel fingers brushing against the back of my jacket. "Idiot," Kallen sobs as she raises her gun and opens fire.


	6. Chapter 6

CHAPTER SIX

After finishing off the majority of the zombies, Kallen and I get up and make a run for the roof. Our path is thankfully clear- Suzaku seems to have a knack for zombie extermination- but every once in a while Kallen has to grab my hand and tug to keep me from falling behind.

All this running is really too much for me. My legs and lungs are burning from exertion. I have a strong suspicion I might not be able to walk much tomorrow. Kallen's mouth keeps moving, shouts words of encouragement I can barely hear over the ringing in my ears. It seems having a pistol fired right next to your head is bad for your hearing. Who knew?

No time to worry about it now, however, as we arrive at the door to the roof which the rest of the group was kind enough to leave open for us. Kallen slams it shut behind us as I double over, struggling to catch my breath. Kallen waits about five seconds, then pushes me towards the others. "What's the hurry?" I ask, perhaps a little too loudly, but I suppose it's hard to adjust your volume when you can barely hear yourself.

Kallen gives me an impatient look and points in the direction she was leading me. It's than that I finally notice not one, but _three_ helicopters waiting for us nearby. _Darlton, you magnificent bastard!_ I think as I follow Kallen. I have no way of knowing that Darlton was the one who sent the extras, of course- for all I know Suzaku contacted them while I was talking to Kallen earlier- but it seems the most like assumption.

Kallen and I scramble aboard the nearest chopper and it lifts up to join the others as we strap ourselves in. Two of the other five passengers are clearly Knightmare pilots, which I find strange until I take a look out the side. The Sutherlands that had been surrounding the school were still there, but their cockpits are open and the bodies are swarming with the undead, no doubt lured from the surrounding area. _What happened?_ I wonder. The iron plate keeping the zombies in the school is still holding, but now there are countless ghouls massing in the streets around the school.

We're too far away for me to see, but I imagine the zombies must have gotten stuck in the Frames' joints while trying to get at the source of the noise. Unable to move, and with ejection being a death sentence these days, the pilots probably contacted the base for more choppers and opened their cockpits to get picked up when they arrived. I'll have to wait until my hearing returns to find out for sure, though, because I'm too tired to shout any more today. All I really want to do is return to the base and find somewhere relatively quiet to-

* * *

When I wake up, it takes me a moment to figure out where I am. Eventually, I remember most of it- the school, rescuing Nunnally, zombies- but the last thing I remember I was still on the helicopter, and now I seem to be in some sort of slapdash infirmary. I must of fallen asleep on the way back and someone moved me here.

I sit up, swinging my legs over the side of the bed and rubbing sleepgunk out of my eyes, and look around for a clock. Not that it'll do me much good, since I stopped keeping track of what time is was after Tohdoh died, but I need _something_ to get my bearing, and a clock seems a good place to start.

Instead of that, however, my eyes settle on an object on the bedside table. It's the chess piece I found earlier. I pick it up and study it. I wonder if it's possible for my tutor to still be in Japan? He was always a fan of the undead, and even referred to himself on more than one occasion as a "zombologist." I know it's a long shot, but if he's still here and still alive, he's probably at least tried to study the ghouls a bit. He might be able to help. Even if he's _not_ in the country, if I can manage to get in touch with him I-

"Oh...or...ing."

I frown and turn around to see a medic standing behind me. "What?"

"I said 'Good morning!'" the medic says, louder this time. He steps inside, letting the curtain fall shut behind him. "I guess your hearing hasn't returned!"

"I guess not!"

The medic selects an otoscope from the litter of medical instruments on a nearby tray. "Nor...ould...an...n't-"

"I can't hear you!"

He turns back to me. "Never mind!" he says, then motions for me to turn my head so he can check my ears. "All right!" he says after he finishes, setting the otoscope back on the tray. "I'm going to start snapping my fingers near your ears! Your job is to cover one ear at a time, and tell me when you can hear the snaps!"

I nod and he completes the test quickly. It takes several seconds before I can hear the snapping from my right, and even longer when he moves to my left. He nods again and drops his hands. "I'll be right back!" he informs me, then turns away.

I lie back on the bed as I watch him leave. I wonder where everyone else is? _It's possible they're all sleeping elsewhere, _I muse, reaching up to scratch the bandage covering the burns on the left side of my face. _Or maybe they went to get something to eat._

My stomach rumbles, reminding me that I've barely eaten since this mess started. How long ago was that? Two days ago? Three? Regardless, I'm starving now. Maybe when the medic comes back, I can ask him to-

"I'm back!" the medic says, stepping back into the enclosure. _Speak of the devil..._ He hands me a notepad and pencil. There are two sentences written on the first page of the book: 'It's going to take some time to get some hearing aids prepared for you. In the meantime, you can use this.'

'Hearing aids?' I write, then hand the pad back to him.

He writes quickly, then hands it back. 'Yeah. Don't worry, they're practically invisible. They're also waterproof, so you can leave them in when taking a shower.'

'But if I start wearing hearing aids, won't it lower my chances of regaining my hearing?'

The medic shrugs, handing the notebook back. That seems awfully flippant for a member of his profession, but I get the point: I'm the viceroy, and this is an emergency. I need to get back to work as soon as possible. There's no time to wait and see if I recover on my own.

I sigh, feeling depressed, and write one more thing on the notepad: 'Thank you.'

* * *

As I suspected, walking seems to be beyond me today. If my muscles could talk, they'd probably be screaming obscenities at me. The medic- who, it turns out, isn't a medic after all, but a civilian doctor named Dr. Jackson- gave me half a Vicodin to take the edge off, and I doze lightly for a bit. I'm awakened by the arrival of Nunnally and Sayoko, who, to my immense joy, have come bearing food.

I focus all of my attention on the food at first, my ravenous appetite overriding my sense of taste, but Miss Sayoko quickly moves in to get me to slow down. 'Don't make me feed you,' she threatens via notepad.

I frown. 'You're awfully assertive today,' I comment, trying hard not to hack up the sub-par chow.

'I didn't think you'd want to choke to death in front of Lady Nunnally.'

That's a good point, but I'm more interested in finishing my meal than writing anything else. Besides, I don't like the shaky quality the combination of muscle weakness and hunger have lent to my handwriting.

After I finish my... food, I lean back, feeling much better. 'Where's everyone else?' I ask.

'Miss Milly + Mr Rivalz are in the waiting room. The nurses said that due to the size of the room, only 2 people can visit at a time,' Sayoko explains. 'Miss Shirley + Miss Nina are helping out in triage, + I believe Mr Suzaku + Miss Kallen are still sleeping.

'Lady Nunnally wants to know how you're feeling.'

'Tell her I'm a little sore, but mostly okay. Where's C-2?'

'I don't know. I haven't seen her since we arrived.

'Lady Nunnally says she's relieved. She's surprised you agreed to become the viceroy.'

'Tell her I almost didn't but Euphy talked me into it.

'Speaking of, where is Euphy?'

'She's in the waiting room, along w/ a couple of officers who need to speak w/ you.

'Lady Nunnally says she's curious as to how Princess Euphemia managed to talk you into it. She also said she can tell that we're having a separate conversation, + that that's rude.'

'Tell her I'm sorry. I hate only being able to talk to her through a middle man like this.'

'Lady Nunnally says she hates it too.'

* * *

Milly, Rivalz, and Euphy all take turns visiting before the officers Sayoko mentioned come in . Euphy, the last visitor, takes Nunnally with her as she leaves. They both wave before the curtain closes, and I faintly hear Nunnally telling me she'll be back later.

I smile behind them, but I straighten my face quickly as Darlton and- to my great surprise- Guilford walk in. I hadn't seen Cornelia's knight at all since arriving on base, so I'd just assumed he was injured, dead, or worse.

The two men don't seem to notice my surprise, however, as they each offer a salute and bow before sitting down. I push a sheet of paper I'd torn from the notebook toward them. On it, I'd written

'Fire  
'Roads Hospitals Food  
'Sakuradite  
'Residential Areas  
'Industrial Areas  
'Sweep'

Darlton and Guilford studied the list for a moment, then started to hand it back to me, but I held my hand up. I handed the notebook to Darlton to show them what I'd written earlier. 'That's our priorities list. I want you two to discuss it amongst yourselves and make changes as you see fit.'

I pretend to read a book Sayoko gave me while they deliberate. I can hear snippets of their conversation , but not enough to know what they're talking about. It's making me nervous, but I avoid looking over, flipping vaguely through the pages until Darlton taps my shoulder. He hands me the list. The only addition is a note on the bottom reading 'Looks good. We'll get right on it.' Wow. General Darlton's handwriting is surprisingly girly.

'Thank you.' I pause a moment, thinking, then add 'Do either of you know anything about Dr John Reilly?'

After a moment, the paper is handed back, the new note written in different handwriting. 'Can you be more specific? John Reilly is a very common name.'

Oh, right. 'He's a research scientist. I don't know of what, though. He once said something about a top-secret experiment for my father, but I don't know any details.' I think a moment, debating whether or not to add more. 'He may be going by either John Caan or Johan Kantor nowadays.'

I hand the paper over and wait while they discuss it. After a few minutes Darlton hands the paper back. 'We haven't heard of any scientists by any of those names, but we'll check it out.'

I nod, indicating I understand. After some more discussion, they offer their farewells and leave.

I sigh and sit back. I'm tired. The doctor didn't say how long it was going to take to get my hearing aids, so I probably have plenty of time to take a little nap before-

The curtain opens again and Suzaku and Kallen walk in. _Oh for the love of God!_ "...oo...ng!" Suzaku says cheerfully.

"I can't hear you!"

Kallen rolls her eyes and picks up my notepad. 'Don't mind him. He's stupid. How are you?'

'I'll be much better as soon as my hearing gets fixed. How are you?'

Suzaku snatches the notepad away and bickers briefly with Kallen. He scribbles something down and hands it to me. I close my eyes for a moment in anticipation of Suzaku's handwriting. It's not necessarily _bad_, just very small and close. It's hard to read. Plus, his spelling is abysmal. Can't put it off forever though. 'How u doing? Your going to be abel to here soon right? Nanaly's woried so-' Okay, that's enough. I think I've got the gist, and he can't even spell Nunnally's name correctly.

'I'm okay; I just need to rest. As do both of you.'

Suzaku and Kallen fight over the notebook, but Kallen ultimately wins, seemingly by pointing out that her handwriting- while not _that_ much better- is at least legible. 'There's no need to tell us. We've already been ordered to "recuperate" for a few days.'

I nod. I figured as much, at least in Suzaku's case; while I was planning out the next couple of days with Darlton and Guilford, I'd placed Suzaku at the head of a zombie disposal unit I'd wanted to have back up the firemen, but Darlton had crossed his name out and replaced it with his own, though he'd been sure to add a note that said 'temporarily, of course.'

A thought occurs and I pull the notebook back toward me. 'Kallen, I know you're supposed to be resting, but I need you to gather as much information as possible on all of the officers around here.

'Suzaku, while she's doing that, I need you to talk to the refugees and enlisted personnel and see if you can get a feel for what most of them think of this situation. Get Milly to help you.'

The two of them read the note, then Suzaku scribbles something on it and hands it back. I sigh as I take it. 'Whats enlisted personel?'

What? How does he not know that? 'How do you not know that?' I write. 'Enlisted personnel are soldiers who aren't officers.'

Suzaku's face lights up with understanding and he nods. I yawn, reaching up to cover my mouth. "Sorry," I say out loud. "I'm tired."

Suzaku frowns and starts to speak, but Kallen elbows him in the side and snaps something at him. I watch them sleepily, wondering with little interest what they're arguing over.

They turn their attention to me and wave their good-byes before turning to leave. Kallen hesitates at the curtain and turns back to me, then blushes and shakes her head furiously before hurrying out.

_What was that about? _I wonder, then yawn again. _Whatever. I'll ask her about it later. Now is the time for sleeping._

I lay back, closing my eyes. A few minutes later, I'm asleep._  
_


	7. Chapter 7

_The two new characters introduced this chapter (Gary and John) are from my fanfic _The Melancholy of Lelouch and Johan. _I planned from the start to have John/Johan play a key role in this, but I brought Gary in because a reviewer for _Melancholy_ requested that he make cameo appearances in other fics, and since he and Johan are heterosexual life partners anyway, it wouldn't be too much of a stretch for him to be in this._

CHAPTER SEVEN

_"ALL RIGHT! HOW'S THAT?"_

_"GAAH! TOO LOUD! TOO LOUD!"_

_"WHOOPS! SORRY!"_

Dr. Jackson makes some adjustments to the volume for my hearing aids, then does the snapping test again. This time he looks a bit more satisfied. "All right. Look's like everything's in order. You're free to go."

"Finally," I breathe, not bothering to keep my voice down, as I gather the large stack of books and scatter dog treats on my bedside table. Nana looks up hopefully and I give him one. "What too so long, anyway?" I ask Jackson. I imagine the hearing aids were probably hard to come by, but after being stuck in this tiny room for three days, I couldn't care less.

"General Darlton told me to make sure you had plenty of time to rest before I gave them to you," Jackson explains, "and I agreed because I'm not stupid."

"Figures."

* * *

A nurse in the waiting room gives me directions to the cafeteria and I head there in search of my friends. However, on the way I hear voices in the hallway up ahead and duck into a nearby closet.

_Um... Why am I hiding? _I wonder, giving Nana another tread to keep him quiet. The voices sound like Darlton and Guilford's, and I can just make out their conversation.

"What's this?" Guilford is asking. "Rope?"

"I think it's a toy Prince Lelouch made for that sniffer dog he adopted," Darlton theorizes.

"I see..." Guilford saays. "Is that really okay? The dog belongs to the military, right? Should we really just let him take it?"

Darlton chuckles. "He didn't just take it," he says. "According to Kururugi, the dog latched on to him first. In any case, his trainer is dead, so I don't think there's any harm in allowing His Highness to look after them."

"'His Highness,' huh?" Guilford muses, his voice almost too low for me to catch. There's a brief pause, then he asks, "Has there been any word from Prince Schneizel?"

I frown. Schneizel? Is he still in Japan? That could be troublesome, especially if he's alive and decides he'd rather act as viceroy until this situation is resolved. My three-day vacation gave me plenty of time to reflect on this situation, and I realized that me being viceroy right now is more beneficial than I first thought. According to Suzaku and Milly, most of the refugees are getting restless. They haven't been told that the homeland cut us off yet, but many of them probably suspect it. It'll be a simple task to use that to my advantage, winning the hearts and minds of the masses to turn them into my army against Britannia. I'll have to try and dig up some information about Schneizel's whereabouts so I can be sure to make my move before he causes trouble.

Outside, Darlton and Guilford are still talking. "I haven't heard from him, no," Darlton is saying. "In any case, Prince Lelouch seems more than capable of handling the situation until we find him."

I bite my lip. They're already planning on having him replace me, huh? I'll have to change their minds about that, preferably without resorting to Geass.

"You trust him?" Guilford asks. "Even though there's a possibility he's-"

"I trust Princess Euphemia," Darlton says, cutting him off, "and she trusts him. That's enough for me."

"Well, it's not enough for me," Guilford argues stubbornly.

"Then keep an eyes on him," Darlton says. "If he starts acting suspicious we'll think of something."

"Very well," Guilford says, and I hear footsteps pass by the door. After a few minutes, more, heavier footsteps pass by as well.

I sigh deeply and lean my head back. This is too much, especially right after getting out of the infirmary. It'd be a simple matter to get Guilford out of the way, but that might cause more harm than good. I suppose the best course of action would be to continue doing my job properly and focus my efforts on the zombies. In the meantime, Kallen and my Geass can take care of converting the people behind the scenes.

I look down at Nana, who's looking up at me, bored, his head on my knee. "Let's go, boy," I say, standing up, then take him by his leash and leave the closet.

* * *

"So, there we are," Milly is saying as I approach the table where my friends are sitting, "Lelouch is in his underwear, glaring at me like 'Give me a reason, _any_ reason, Madam President, and I'll-' Oh, hey, Lelouch!" she calls, waving.

I sigh as I walk over. "That story again, Madam President?" I ask. "I'm sure everyone here has heard it a thousand times!"

"I haven't!" Euphy says, pouting.

"Neither have I," C.C. adds.

"I thought you were missing," I say, frowning.

"I'm back now."

"Obviously. Where where you?"

"Around."

I sigh again and sit down. Why do I even bother? "Euphy," I say aloud, "do you know if General Darlton or Lord Guilford have found any information on the person I asked them to find?"

"No, I don't," Euphy says, lowering her head. "They don't tell me anything."

"I see." I suspected as much.

"Hey!" Milly says, clapping her hands. "No talking about work! This is a party!"

I raise an eyebrow incredulously and look around. The cafeteria is mostly full, each table crowded with depressed-looking people who clearly have no interest in us. "Some party," I say. "What are we supposed to be celebrating?"

"Isn't it obvious? We're all alive and you and Kallen got your hearing fixed!"

I turn my attention to Kallen, surprised. "Your hearing got messed up, too?" I ask her.

"Well, obviously," she says, rolling her eyes. "I was, like, three more inches away from the gun than you were. The fact that we were in a stairwell and everything echoed didn't help, either," she explains. "My hearing loss isn't as severe as yours, but it's still pretty bad."

"Why didn't you say anything?" I ask, frowning.

"I didn't want to worry you."

In order to ease the awkwardness, I start breaking up the hamburger on the tray Sayoko passed to me when I sat down and feeding chunks of it to Nana.

Suzaku frowns. "You shouldn't feed human food to dogs," he says. "You'll spoil him."

"I want to spoil him," I say as Nana licks grease off my fingers. "I've never had a dog before."

"That doesn't mean you should spoil him."

I shrug. Despite what I'd overheard, I'm in a good mood, and don't want to ruin it by getting in a pointless argument. Besides, I have no intention of eating the... "meat" served here. Better to give it away then let it go to waste.

"So, Lelouch," Milly says, "is what I heard true?"

"That depends on what you heard."

"Don't play dumb," Milly scolds. "Princess Euphemia told us your the temporary viceroy."

"Oh, that," I say, feeling my spirits start to sink a bit. Milly's tone is a bit more accusatory than I like. "Why do you ask?"

"Oh, just curious," Milly says vaguely.

"Really?"

"Yeah, really," she confirms sharply. She looks away for a moment, pursing her lips. "You're not planning on making a habit of storming zombie-infested buildings are you?" she finally asks.

I don't answer for a long moment, thinking carefully how to phrase my reply. "Well," I finally say, "there are a lot of 'zombie-infested buildings' around here. What sort of viceroy would I be if I didn't lead my troops into battle?"

"The kind who doesn't force his friends and the people under his care to worry about him when they already have enough to worry about."

I open my mouth to argue with her- though how, I have no idea- but Shirley intervenes before I can. "No fighting, you two!" she scolds. "As you said, Prez, this is a party!"

"We weren't fighting," I say defensively, but Shirley just rolls her eyes and lifts her cup.

"I propose a toast!" she declares. "To friendship!"

The others all lift their cups as well. After a moment's hesitation, I sigh and follow suit. "This is incredibly silly," I warn.

"No one cares," Milly says. "To friendship!"

"To friendship!"

* * *

For the third time in an hour, I catch myself chewing on my pen and have to force myself to stop. Cornelia's desk- no, I suppose it's mine now, isn't it?- is littered with personnel files and inventory reports. After five hours of trying to make sense of it all I suppose it's about time to finally admit I have no idea what I'm doing here. Why should being viceroy be so much more trouble than building an army? I'm starting to develop some grudging respect for Clovis and Cornelia's administrative skills.

I sigh and push some of the papers away. I wonder what time it is? I suppose I could probably get away with turning in for the night. I _did_ just get out of the infirmary, after all.

I shake my head vigorously. I'm already three days behind on this stuff. If I start slacking off now I'll never catch up.

I lean over to pick up a few papers that fell on the floor, and it's then that I notice the message light blinking on Cor- my phone.

"Oh, crap," I mutter under my breath, reaching up to finger the bracelet that controls the volume on my hearing aids. I pick the phone up and hit the playback button.

_"Viceroy, this is General Darlton," _Darlton's recorded voice says._ "We found someone we believe may be your Dr. Reilly at a university hospital in Osaka. I managed to get in contact with a pathologist on staff there named John Kantor-Petrov, so I'm taking a helicopter to go and pick him up._"

The message continues from there, but I've heard enough. I fast-forward through the rest until I hear the time stamp, then check the clock. He left the message less than fifteen minutes ago.

I hang up and head to the roof.

* * *

I stand on the helicopter pad, enjoying the warmth offered by the flight jacked the major in charge loaned me to keep out the cold.

I look around at all the hustle and bustle surrounding me. According to the reports I've read, helicopters have been coming and going constantly ever since the zombies broke through the ghetto quarantine. Some are picking up survivors from the surrounding area, while others are delivering supplies to large safe zones.

I've been monitoring news reports from the Chinese Federation and there haven't been any reported outbreaks, but I'd be willing to bet everything I own that the government is hushing them up. According to reports, our coasts have been a madhouse ever since the situation got out of hand, with refugees who were unable to escape by plane before the entire Area was quarantined scrambline to flee by boat. It's pretty much a guarantee that at least one of the refugees trying to escape across the Sea of Japan was infected, and even if the others managed to toss every single zombie overboard (impossible), I wouldn't be surprised if they could just walk along the seafloor to the mainland after they reanimated.

Of course, there's still the matter of those who _did_ manage to escape by plane. Knowing That Man, he probably gave orders to airport personnel to detail anyone arriving from Japan- of not having their planes shot down on sight.

In any case, I give it a month at maximum before the entire world is as infected as Area 11. So, that gives me a month to clean up Japan and make it my own.

I catch sight of a helicopter approaching from the west and turn to glance at the command center. The major is running towards me. "You realize you're never getting this jacket back, right?" I ask as he comes within earshot.

He chuckles a bit as he approaches. "It's a nice jacket, isn't it?"

"It's all fuzzy and warm," I agree, fingering the collar. "And if you ever tell anyone I said that, I'll demote you faster than you can say 'self-esteem issues.'"

"Does that apply to every part of this conversation?"

"Just that last bit."

The major nods his understanding. "If you'd like, I could give you the number of a good therapist."

"No, thanks. Is that them?"

"Yes. That's what I came out here for."

"I figured."

"Sometimes I forget what I'm doing."

"And you made it all the way to _major_?"

"Surprising, isn't it?"

"It is."

We stand in silence until the helicopter lands. General Darlton jumps out the open side, then turns to help a younger man out of the chopper. I approach, smiling a little. "Hello, Mr. Masterson," I say.

Masterson turns to me, grinning. "Hey there, Grumpy!" he says. "You got taller!"

"Yeah, well, the last time you saw me I was twelve." I peer past him, trying to see into the helicopter. "So, is Dr. Kantor-"

"Hey, Gary!"

I look up. Five years and I still recognize that voice.

Mr. Masterson turns toward the interior of the chopper and reaches out to help the owner of the voice out. There's a little more gray in his hair and a few more lines on his face, but it's still unmistakably him.

Dr. Kantor catches sight of me and grins sloppily. "Hey there, kid," he says. "How ya doin'?"


	8. Chapter 8

_This is turning into less of a horror story and more of a mystery story. I should probably change the genre._

CHAPTER EIGHT

"You know what I love about Britannia?" Dr. Kantor asks.

"What?"

"We're in the middle of an emergency situation of epic proportions, completely cut off from the rest of the world, and yet there's still plenty of coffee." Kantor grins and raises his mug in a mock-toast. "It's nice."

"Just finish reading those reports," I grumble. It's past midnight, and I'm in no mood to hear someone I once idolized sing the praises of the country I hate more than anything.

"Yeah, yeah," Kantor says, shifting to a more comfortable position in his chair. "Though you know, without a live specimen to study, these reports aren't doing much good."

I frown. "Didn't you study any while you were stuck in the hospital?"

"From a distance, yeah," he answers easily. "I couldn't really cut one open with my kid there. It'd give him nightmares."

"He's eleven. He probably would've offered to help."

"Yeah, you're right. The truth is that I didn't want to compromise the security of our hard-won territory." He purses his lips, thinking. "Why didn't I just say that?"

"How should I know?" I grumble. "Though that reminds me. How _did_ you all survive, anyway? Hospitals are some of the most heavily-infested locations. we've pretty much given up hope of finding any survivors there."

Kantor chuckles. "Gary and I are the biggest zombie nerds on the planet- hell, I used to make them for a living. Sure, it was mostly dumb luck that he and Nikolai were at the hospital when the first wave started to reanimate, but the rest was pure nerd expertise."

"Inspiring. If you need samples, ask Darlton to have his men catch you some. It's not like we're wanting for zombies at the moment."

"Will do," Kantor says, dropping his stack of reports on the floor next to his chair and using the crutches he'd borrowed from the infirmary to pull himself up. "Oh no, don't help," he says through cleched teeth as she struggles to keep his balance. "I'm fine."

I hurry around the desk to grab him before he topples over. "When is your leg going to get fixed?" I ask.

"They said it might be a few days. They have to scavenge the parts from some junked Knightmares and modify them to fit something human-sized."

"I see," I say, frowning. "Maybe you should wait for it to get fixed before you start cutting up the undead."

"I was going to. I need to use the bathroom."

"Oh. Okay."

* * *

"You know, it's strange," Kantor says a little while later, tapping the paper he was reading against his mouth.

"What?"

"All of it," Kantor says, waving an arm in an all-encompassing gesture. "I know zombies are commonly believed to be contagious, but the ones I made weren't, and that's just one of the differences I've been able to determine between them so far."

"Wait," I say, holding my hands up. "So you're saying you _really_ make zombies? I thought you were joking!"

"_Made_, not make. I quit a few years ago."

"_Why_ were you making zombies?" I ask, still not entirely prepared to believe him. Teasing me used to be one of his favorite pastimes, after all.

"Well, technically," he begins, shifting slightly in his seat, "I was trying to produce a drug that could bring someone back to life without them turning into zombies. We actually came pretty close: When I quit I had a patient who'd been resurrected for a year before suffering symptoms of zombification. The record before that was six months," he explains. "Which brings me to the next big difference: these people are going straight from dead to zombie with no period of lucidity at all. Only my first batch of Zombie Powder could do that, and last I checked it was locked in a vault beneath the Imperial Palace."

"The Palace? My _father_ was in on this?"

"Of course. He was the one funding it."

"I see..." I say, even though I don't exactly. Why would my father- a stalwart Social Darwinist who wrote his own son off as a weakling at his funeral- want to develop a drug to bring people back from the dead? It doesn't fit! "What happened to the project after you quit? Was it abandoned, or..."

Kantor laughs a little. "Of course it wasn't abandoned. His High Lord Charlie had already spent eight years and over a billion dollars on it by the time I quit," he says. "No, when I left I turned the project over to my assistant, a brilliant biochemist named Derek Steele. He'd been working with me from the beginning, after all, so he knew the ropes."

"Do you think he could have done this?"

"Doubt it. He's been dead for over a year."

"What? What happened?"

"Rectal cancer."

"Oh..."

"I'm kidding. He committed suicide."

I scowl at him. "Why would you joke about something like that?"

"Because suicide is depressing and rectal cancer is funny."

_"What?"_

"What's wrong? Did someone you know die of rectal cancer?"

"No."

"Do you- God forbid- have rectal cancer?"

"No! And stop saying 're-' Stop saying that!"

"Then why are you getting so defensive?"

"Because cancer isn't funny!"

"Rectal cancer is."

I sigh and put my head in my hands for a moment. "Do you know who took over after Steele passed away?" I ask, feeling drained.

"He didn't 'pass away.' He died. 'Passed away' making me picture dying peacefully in their sleep. Steele shot himself in the face."

"Whatever. Just answer the question."

"Hmmm..." Kantor says, leaning back and putting his hands behind his head. "I don't know," he finally admits. "They didn't tell me. However, you might be able to find out if you do an online search for 'Phalanx.'"

"Is that the official name of the drug you were developing?" I ask, already typing.

"It is, yes. How astute of you."

"Shut up. It's three in the morning," I snap. "No, all I'm getting is stuff about the military formation."

"Ah, well, it was worth a shot," Kantor says easily. He turns to sit in the chair properly and pulls a blank sheet of paper towards him. "I'll write you a list of the names of everyone I ever worked with," he says, taking a pen from the container on the desk. "After that, I'll help you look through all the records Clovis left behind for any mention of them. We should be able to track this thing down."

I frown. "Why Clovis?"

"I'll explain later. Just get the records."

* * *

It's almost four by the time I manage to unlock Clovis' files, so Dr. Kantor and I decide to call it a night and start going through them in the morning. I help him back to the room he's sharing with Mr. Masterson and Kolya, then head off to Suzaku's room,

"Oh, hey!" Suzaku calls as I walk in. "Did you find out anything interesting?"

"Plenty, but not enough," I say, frowning and looking from him to Rivalz. "You two are still awake?"

"We were waiting for you," Rivalz yawns. "Being Viceroy must keep you pretty busy, huh?"

"Yeah, well, I just have a lot of work to do right now. Things should calm down eventually." I sigh heavily and sink down onto the floor next to Suzaku. With all the refugees making space scarce, I decide while I was still in the infirmary that Rivalz and I would share a room with Suzaku, while Milly, Shirley, and Nina took over Cornelia's old room, and Nunnally and Sayoko joined Euphy in her's. Cornelia's room is technically mine now, but I wouldn't feel comfortable sleeping there. A team of wild horses could never drag the admission out of me, but if I tried I'd probably find myself constantly expecting Cornelia to come bursting in to tell me to get out. "Hey, Suzaku, have you ever heard of Phalanx?"

"No. What is it?"

"Maybe nothing," I say, pulling the list of names out of my pocket. "How 'bout these people? Have you ever heard of any of them?"

Suzaku studies the list for a few moments. "I don't think... No, wait! I know this guy!" he declares, proudly, pointing to a name about halfway down the list.

I take a peek over his shoulder. "'Lucius White,'" I read aloud. "Who is he?"

"Not sure," Suzaku admits, shrugging. "I saw him a few times while I was in Basic. He was training dogs."

"For what?"

"Dunno, but I remember thinking it was weird because he never wore a uniform."

"Why was a civilian training military dogs?" Rivalz pipes up, peering at the list over both our shoulders.

"Dunno," Suzaku repeats, then resumes studying the list for a few more minutes. Just as I'm beginning to nod off, he says, "I know these three, too. Mark Hopper, Jessica Applegate, and Micah Wood. They used to come through the barracks every couple of months and give all of us physicals. They they'd select two or three to take back to wherever they came from. They never told us why, but the selected soldiers were never heard from again, so we called them 'Shinigami San.'"

"What's that?" Rivalz asks blankly.

"'Shinigami' are the Japanese equivalent of the Grim Reaper, except there are tons of them," I answer distractedly, taking the paper and scribbling notes next to the names Suzaku mentioned. "'San' is an honorific the rough equivalent of 'Mr.' or 'Ms.' and is also a homophone for 'three.' It's a play on words. Anyone else." This last part was directed at Suzaku, who shakes his head.

"I didn't know you spoke Japnese," Rivalz muses aloud. "I guess I should've figured."

"I speak several languages. Thanks for the help, Suzaku."

"You're welcome," Suzaku says. "But why are you asking? Who are these people?"

"Can't say yet," I answer apologetically. "I still need some more information. I'll fill you in as soon as I can." I pause a moment as something occurs to me. "You said _'used_ to,' right? When did the Shinigami stop coming around?"

"The last time was about a month before the Shinjuku Incident. I heard the Major told everyone they wouldn't be coming around anymore around the time Clovis' death went public."

"Major who?"

"Right."

"What?"

"Huh?"

"What's his _name_?"

"You just said it. Major Hu."

"_That_ ain't right," Rivalz laughs.

"Yeah, he hated it. He insisted we just call him 'Major' or 'the Major.'"

"What's his first name?" I ask.

"It's something like Bradley or Brandon."

"Thank you," I say, scribbling the name down. "So, anything else of relevance you want to add?"

He thinks it over for a moment. "Nope."

"Good. Then I'm going to sleep."

* * *

"It's always so nice to se my little baby interns become grown-up doctors and scientists," Kantor says the next day as we wander through the base in search of Major Hu. Suzaku had told me where his office was, but we'd arrived to find it being used as a nursery. "Not so sure how I feel about them being referred to as 'death gods,' though."

"They were your interns?" I ask.

"Yeah. Jessie once spilled my coffee, so as punishment I made her go on a date with Gary. Remember that, Gary?"

"That's a punishment?"

"I'm thirty-five-year-old manchild whose best friend pays him to do nothing. Is it really any surprise I don't do well around women?"

"_That_, and he's got the most horrible foot odor I've ever smelled," Kantor says matter-of-factly. "His feet should be classified as a deadly weapon."

"Dude, I will drop you right here."

"Sorry. Though y'know Gary, you should really get that looked at."

"I don't like podiatrists. I think they're up to something, with their creepy foot lust and massive bank accounts. It's unnatural, I tells ya!"

"_Anyway_," Kantor says. "Back on topic, that info about Lucy really explains a lot."

"Lucy?"

"Lucius. He hates that nickname, but he's also a preening, pompous, bag o' douche, so I don't care. Also he's not here."

"Ah," I say. "What does it explain?"

"Why we're not all walking around covered in dog bites."

"Huh?"

"Dogs don't like zombies," Kolya supplies cheerfully from my side. "They go crazy when they're around."

"That's right," Kantor says. "They have to be specially trained from birth to learn to tolerate the smell."

"I see..." I murmur. "Kolya, please stop swinging my arm around like that."

"But it's fun!"

"Not for me. My shoulder's getting tired."

"Let the kid have his fun," Mr. Masterson said. "I mean, I gotta carry this lazy bastard. The least you can do is let Kolya do as he pleases."

"Shut up! Crutches make my armpits hurt!"

"Not to get us back on track or anything," I say, "but can we get back on track?"

"Sure, kid. Whatever you want."

"Right. So, Docto-"

"John."

I stop, taken aback by the sudden interruption. "Huh?"

"Just call me John," Kantor repeats. "You're not my student anymore. As much as it pains me to admit it, you're technically my boss, but since we're buddies you can just call me John."

"Um, all right... J-John," I say, not the least bit comfortable. "Though, that brings up another thing I've been wondering about. Why did you change your name?"

"Way to get back on track, Viceroy!" Kolya sings.

"Shut up."

"I got sick of having three separate names so I combined them," John answers, clearly ignoring us. "And even though John's not one of the names I grew up with, it's a _man's_ name that I don't have to tell Britannians how to pronounce."

"Ah. So-"

"I mean, seriously!" he continues. "How hard is 'Johan?' It's like calling that _Star Wars_ guy: 'Yo! Han!' Simple, right? Well, that's what I though, too, but now..."

"The letter 'J' doesn't-"

"I _knew_ I should've gone with Nikolai from the beginning. Sure the pronunciation isn't perfect, but it's closer than 'Joe-han.'"

"Dad, nobody's listening to you anymore," Kolya informs him.

"Oh. Sorry," John says, unbothered. "Anyway, Lelouch, you were saying?"

What _was_ I saying? Oh, right. "How did you know Clovis was involved in this?" I ask. "I thought my father was the one behind it. Kolya, will you _please_ stop swinging my arm around?"

"He was, but Clovis found out about the study somehow," John says. "About three or four years ago he approached my team because he wanted us to help him with his own super-secret project."

"What project?" I ask. Could this have something to do with C.C.? She refused to answer any of my questions so I let the matter be, but if John knows anything about it...

"I dunno all the details," John says, shrugging, "but apparently he got his hands on some sort of strange girl he believed was immortal. He felt his research could benefit mine and vice versa, but I refused. It was too much like mad science for my tastes."

"Uh, didn't you make _zombies_?"

"Yes, but everyone I experimented with signed a consent form ahead of time. Clovis' 'Code-R' subject, on the other hand, was being held against her will. I don't hold with torture, kidnapping, unlawful imprisonment, or any other direct violations of my Hippocratic Oath, so I requested that he kindly blow it out his ass." He paused. "Not in so many words, of course."

"Of course."

"Still, judging from what your friend said, I don't think one of my successors is the one responsible for this. His High Lord Charlie keeps _far_ too tight a leash on his pets. I believe it may have been someone who left the team while I was still in charge. Of course, there's no way of knowing for sure until we find this Major of yours."

"Any suspects?"

"Yeah. Four so far," John says, giving me a pointed look. "Lucy White, Mark Hopper, Jessie Applegate, and Mike Wood."

"Anyone else?"

"Did Suzaku mention any other names?"

"No."

"Then no," John says, then pauses again, thinking.

"What is it?" I ask.

"I don't know. Let's talk to your major first," he says, then lapses into silence.

"_Dammit_, Kolya! Stop swinging my arm around!"


	9. Chapter 9

_Sorry for the wait. I'm back, and chapters should be coming once a week again._

CHAPTER NINE

In addition to the cafeterias for enlisted personnel and officers, the base also has a rather large food courst that carries fast-food restaurants such as McDonald's, Taco Bell, and the newest bane of my existence: Pizza Hut. In the week since the base opened up as a refugee center, several of the restaurants have run out of product and closed down, but there are a few that still have a little bit of food left. I made it quite clear that any food we get from the daily supply runs would go to the cafeterias, so once the last few restaurants here close down, I'll be able to open this space as a recreation area for the refugees. Since food court tends to be a lot quieter and less crowded than either of the cafeterias, so my friends and I have made it our temporary hangout.

After spending the morning searching unsuccessfully for Major Hu, John, Mr Masterson, Kolya, and I return to the food court to eat and regroup. "This is frustrating," I sigh, dropping into a seat next to Nunnally. "We keep finding people who point us in one direction, but once we get there the Major isn't! I'm tempted to get on the intercom and tell him to stay the hell put."

"Then why don't you?" Milly asks as if this is the most obvious thing in the world.

"Because I don't want Guilford knows who we're looking for," I explain. "Euphy's been keeping him distracted so far, but eventually he'll be able to get away, and I won't be able to look any more."

"Why not?" Suzaku asks. "You're not doing anything bad, are you?"

"Of course not. I just don't want Darlton or Guilford to hear anything about this until I've figured everything out."

"Ah!" Suzaku says suddenly, startling me. He stands up and starts waving an arm in the air. "Major! Major Hu! Over here!" he calls excitedly.

I look from him to the man he's waving at, stunned. "This seems unlikely," I complain.

"Not really," John says. "Most people are eating lunch right now, and there are only three places to get food. One in three odds is generally rather favorable."

"Oh, Pri- _Major_ Kururugi," Hu says as he approaches our table. "What is it?"

"Lelouch wants to talk to you," Suzaku says.

"Lelouch?" Hu says, frowning at me. "Oh, the new viceroy, huh? How may I help you, Your Highness?"

John snorts. "'Your Highness…'"

I give him a quick glare to shut him up, then return my attention to Hu. "I wanted to ask you about the three doctors who used to examine your troops," I explain. "Hopper, Applegate, and Wood, I believe their names were."

Hu purses his lips, thinking. "Oh, yeah!" he says, popping his fist in an open palm. "Those three. What about 'em?"

"Can you tell me anything about them? What they were looking for, where they took the soldiers they selected, etcetera?"

Hu thinks this over for a long time. "Not much," he finally admits. "They said they worked for the viceroy, and their work was classified."

My shoulders slump in defeat. _A dead en-_

"However," Hu continues and I look up warily. "I would sometimes see them talking with General Bartley both before and after they made their way through the barracks."

"Bartley, huh? Thanks."

"Well, that's no good," Suzaku complains as he leaves. "General Bartley was sent back to the homeland after Prince Clovis was murdered."

"He should be back in Japan," Kallen objects. "I saw him with Schneizel on Kamine Island."

"She's right, he's here," Euphy confirms. "He's working on some sort of secret project with Brother Schneizel."

"What sort of secret project?" I ask, but Euphy just shrugs. I sigh and lean back. "Well, do you know where he is? Is he on base?"

"I'm not sure. Lord Guilford might know."

I sigh again. "Is there anyone else who might know? Guilford doesn't think very highly of me."

"I'm sorry."

John clears his throat. "Placing blame is all well and good," he says, "but right now I still need a few samples to analyze."

"I thought you were going to wait until your leg got fixed."

"To dissect them, yes. That doesn't mean I can't test them in other ways in the meantime."

"Right," I say. "I'll have Darlton handle it. Just let him know what sample size you want, plus any specifications on type."

"Gotcha," John says, using his crutches to lift himself out of his chair. "You do that, and I'll go investigate your labs and see if I can get one of them set up to suit my needs."

I nod and return my attention to questioning Euphy. I glance up and spot John standing in the doorway, standing me. He turns and walk out, flanked by Mr. Masterson and Nikolai.

* * *

I yawn widely and reach up to rub sleepgunk out of my eyes. Since lunch, I've been reading reports from my officers and people in charge of the other refugee centers, but they've all started to run together. After about an hour, I started sorting them into two piles: One for the men trying to ingratiate me so I'll send help, and the other for those outright demanding it. I typed up a form letter promising to do what I can, but my entire right hand is throbbing from having to sign my name over and over again.

I lean back, massaging my wrist while I think. Darlton sent out teams to put the fires out as soon as I told him to, and results have generally been favorably, though one unit did get swamped so badly we were forced to send in helicopters to rescue them. The fires aren't out completely yet, but I suppose the situation is under enough control that I can start focusing on securing areas where we can get food. John claimed the zombies could survive for some time underwater so fishing may be dangerous, but I'm sure there's enough food still stocked in department, convenience, and grocery stores around the country to allow us not to worry about anyone starving to death for a while longer. The only question is how to get to it.

I'm still debating the matter when the lights begin to flicker, then die. I look up, frowning. Everything in Britannia that doesn't run on sakuradite uses space-based solar power, and power outages are all but unheard of. The only other time I remember it happening was because a meteor collided with one of the satellites, damaging it. It was quickly replaced, though, and power was restored within the hour.

Is that what happened here? If so, what do I do? The only people who can replace it are in the homeland, and I don't know the number to get in touch with them. And even if I did, there's no guarantee that my call would go through, thanks to the quarantine.

I push some papers around on my desk, then rummage through some of the files on the computer, looking for a list of emergency contacts. It's a foolish endeavor, however: I checked the first time I came in here, and on the outside chance Cornelia _was_ kind enough to leave a list, she didn't bother to put it somewhere I could find it.

I sigh and pick up the phone. "This is Lelouch," I say as soon as Darlton answers. "Do you know what happened to the power?"

"_No, my lord," _ he answers regretfully. _"The emergency generators should kick on in a- Ah, there they are."_

The lights flicker again, then came back on, though not as bright as before. "How long will they last?" I ask.

"_Well, there are four, and their stores are full, so we should be okay for a few months, at least; longer if you make sure everyone conserves electricity."_

"Do that," I order. "In the meantime, what's the number for the power plant in the homeland? I want to find out what happened." He rattles it off for me and I hang up.

The phone at the power company rings for almost a full minute before a bored-sounding woman comes on the line. _"Britannia Power and Water," _she says. _"This is Brienne. How may I help you?"_

"This is the Viceroy of Area 11," I say. "I'm at the army base and the power's out. What's going on?"

The woman doesn't answer for a long moment. _"Isn't Princess Cornelia viceroy of Area 11?" _ she finally asks. _"Is this supposed to be some kind of joke?"_

"Viceroy Cornelia is dead. I was selected as her replacement until the current situation over here gets under control. Why don't we have any power?"

There is another long pause before Brienne says: _"It says Area 11 has been shut off by order of His Majesty."_

I grind my teeth. "Why?"

"_It doesn't say."_

"Of course not. Can you get the power back on over here? I'm kind of swamped with refugees who don't need anything else to stress them out right now."

"_No, sir. With all due respect, I'm just a receptionist, and even if I wasn't, I wouldn't have the authority to override a command from the emperor."_

"Of course not," I say, feeling like an idiot. "Thanks, anyway."

I hang up, then sit a moment, massaging my temples in hopes of staving off an impending headache. I hate this job.

I pick up the phone again, sighing. A few minutes later, I hang up from another call with Darlton, this time with a phone number that should get me in touch with my father. I sit staring at the number for a long time, wondering whether or not I should call him myself or have Euphy deal with him. If I call him myself, he'll know I'm alive, which a piece of information I'm still not quite ready to allow him. If I let Euphy talk to him, she might let something slip, and even if she doesn't, she won't have much of a chance of convincing him to switch the power back on.

I take a deep breath and reach for the phone.

* * *

"You're such a wuss, _zhuchok_," John says amiably, picking up the phone. "He's not going to bite you."

I glare at him. "Aren't I a little too old for that nickname?" I ask. "Besides, I'm not worried about him _biting_ me; I'm worried about him finding out Nunnally and I are alive."

"It's cute how you think you're going to be able to keep that a secret forever while you're still living in a Britannian colony. You know Australia is still a thing, right? And if the prospect of beautiful beaches, toilets that flush backward, and many of the most deadly animals on the planet doesn't interest you, my dad would love to have you and Nunnally move to Nikitinia. He keeps asking when you're going to go help him out again."

"I'm not fleeing to a neutral country," I snap. "Just call him."

John shrugs. "Whatever you say, kid," he says. "Hello!" This last is directed at whoever is on the other side of the phone. "This is the temporary viceroy of Area 11. I need to speak with His Majesty. This is an emergen… Uh-huh… Yeah… Look, just tell him it's Do… No, he knows me… Yeah, really… Just ask him. I'll wait."

John covers the mouthpiece with his hand and turns to me. "I hate when he gets new secretaries. It's always the same: I call, they don't believe I have any business calling, I tell them to ask him, they're proven wrong. Is it really so hard for him to just tell them my- Hello again! Will he talk to me now…? Thank you."

"Are they getting him?" I ask.

He nods. "That was pretty quick," he says. "He must not be busy."

"Goody for hi-"

"Hello, Your Majesty!" Johan says, cutting me off. "How are you…? That's good… He's fine, thank you for asking… Yeah, Princess Euphemia didn't want to do it, and I drew the short straw… Dunno… No… No… Yeah… Pretty well, considering… There's been no sign of him. Most likely he's either dead or in a refugee camp somewhere… Zero's not my main concern at the moment… Because the entire country is under siege and we're quickly running out of food… With all due respect, Your Majesty, if he _does_ come out of hiding, chances are good it'll be to help. In that case, I'll make him sub-viceroy…

"No, I'm not… Because this is an emergency and we need all the help we can get. Lest you've forgotten, we've been quarantined… Well, in any case, if he hasn't shown up yet, he's not going to… Yes, I'm sure… Uh-huh… I understand… Thank you, Your Majesty…

"Speaking of the quarantine, Your Majesty, I hear you ordered the power shut off… Uh-huh… Uh-huh… I understand, but we kind of need electricity over here… Yes, but… _Yes, _but we're about to try and start raiding grocery stores and it would help if half the food wasn't spoiled before we got to it… I suppose… That makes sense, but… Uh-huh… I think the refugees would feel safer if we had power. As it is, they're already getting kind of antsy… Yes… Yes… All ri… All right… Thank you, Your Majesty… All right, take care. Bye."

He hangs up and turns back to me, smiling. "He says he'll turn it back on."

I breathe a sigh of relief. "That's good. Thank you, John."

"There's more."

_Of course there is. _"What is it?"

"Chucky said that when Schneizel is found, he wants him as the new viceroy."

"That's not surprising. What if he _isn't_ found?"

"Then I'll be stuck with the job. And by 'I' I of course mean 'you.'"

"Tragic. Regardless, I don't intend for the emperor's opinion on how Area 11 is governed to matter for very much longer."

"Not surprised."

"I didn't think you would be," I say, then tell him what I have in mind.

He thinks it over for a long time. "Sounds like a good idea," he finally declares. "What the hell. I guess I'll help out."

"If it doesn't work, you'll be executed along with me, you know."

"Oh, bwuh, _whaaaat?_" John says melodramatically. "Well, isn't that a kick in the- All my dreams are dead!"

I roll my eyes. "I was just letting you know."

"I don't need some punk kid to tell me anything." John grunts and lifts himself out of the chair. He reaches out and pats me on the shoulder, grinning. "Let's go commit some treason."


	10. Chapter 10

_Whelp, I've filled up one notebook with this thing already. I was thinking of auctioning it off and donating the money to charity, but I dunno. I'll probably just stick it in a drawer somewhere and forget about it._

**CHAPTER TEN**

"It's not fair," I say, sulking. "I want to come, too."

Suzaku and Kallen exchange a look, then turn back towards me, eyebrows raised incredulously. "Um, are you all right, Lelouch?" Suzaku asks. "Since when do _you_ want to run headlong into danger?"

I cross my arms and look down my nose at him. "If the kind doesn't lead, how can he expect his subordinates to follow?" I ask. "I don't like sending other people out to fight while I hand back where it's safe."

"And the people don't like getting a new viceroy every week," Darlton points out from my shoulder.

"You don't know that. Maybe they like variety," I retort, but the scarred general just snorts and shakes his head.

"Don't worry, Lelouch," Suzaku says. "I can handle this. How hard could it be?"

"Murderously."

Suzaku rolls his eyes. "I'll be in Lancelot the whole time," he says, "and everyone else will be in Sutherlands. We'll be fine."

"And from what I hear, Cornelia was in a Glasgow. Besides, I know you: You're going to turn your radio on and jump out of the unit to join Kallen's men."

"Yeah, well, you said yourself…" Suzaku says, trying to avoid eye contact.

I study him for a moment, then turn to look over my shoulder. "Nunnally! Euphy!" I call. My sisters step forward and I turn back to Suzaku. "Promise them," I order him.

"Oh, come on, Lelouch," he argues. "That's not-"

"Promise them, or I'll give Darlton command of this operation and _you_ command of the lunchroom."

Suzaku's mouth tightens into a thin white line while he glowers at me silently. After a moment, he sighs and turns to the girls. "I promise," he says.

"Promise _what_?" I prod.

Suzaku glares at me for a moment. "I _promise_ I'll stay in my Knightmare."

"Good boy," I say, clapping him on the shoulder. I turn my attention to Kallen while my sisters tell Suzaku to be careful. "Are you sure you want to go?" I ask, not for the first time. "There's plenty to do around here, you know."

"Yeah, I know," she says, shrugging. "Sill, I can't take any more of this sitting around. I'm getting bored."

"Fair enough. Be careful, though."

"Oh, please. I am always _so_ careful."

It takes all of my willpower to refrain from rolling my eyes. Instead, I take her by the arm and lead her away from the others so I can talk to her for a moment in private. "What was that about?" Suzaku asks when we rejoin him. I'm momentarily taken by an urge to slap the knowing smile off his face, but I restrain myself long enough to answer: "Nothing."

Suzaku scoffs a bit, but doesn't say anything so I don't have to throttle him. "All right!" he calls, clapping his hands to get the soldiers' attention. "We're moving out now! To your transports!"

"_Yes, sir!"_ the soldiers respond in unison, then start running towards their designated shuttles.

"See you later, Suzaku, Kallen," I say, lifting a hand in farewell.

"Later!" Suzaku answers, running off. Kallen just nods and follows.

* * *

"_Aaaall we wanna do is eat your brains! We're not unreasonable; I mean, no one's gonna eat your eyes!" _John is singing louding when I enter his new lab with Nunnally.

"That's not in very good taste," I scold, frowning.

"Aww, but I love that song. What's up?"

"Just came for a visit," I say, looking around. The laboratory is doubtless no where near as well-equipped as the ones John was used to, but the army did well with the resources available to them. The specimens are being confined to a soundproof cell along the back wall. I can see them beating useless against the tempered glass, trying to get out. John himself is standing at an operating table in the middle of the room, apparently dissecting one of the zombies. There are a few lab benches around, but aside from John, there's no one else around.

"I figured," John says. "If this was a business meeting, you wouldn't have brought Nanny. By the way, hi, Nan."

"Hello, Doctor."

"I wasn't ignoring you, y'know."

Nunnally giggles. "I know."

"You're working here alone?" I ask, frowning.

"Yeah. All of the other scientist on assigned to this base are either serving as medics or with Prince Schnazzy."

"What about Mr. Masterson?"

"Gary only has a high school diploma. He's basically just a paid companion, only without the sex. He has other work to do."

"Mmm…" I say, nodding. "The Doctor and his companion."

"What are you implying?" John asks, smiling wryly.

"Nothing. Just missing TV," I say, pulling on a pair of rubber gloves and leaning over the zombie on the table. "Um, John? Is this thing still alive?"

"It's more effective to study them while the brain is still intact."

"Yeah, but why isn't he moving? Like, at all? And not tied up?"

"I removed his spinal cord. "

"Who does the spinal cord still work if nothing else does?" Nunnally asks. "I can't hear a heart beat…"

"Whatever virus or parasite does this kills everything else, but leaves the brain just intact enough to allow the body to continue moving, though all conscious thought is ceased. Without the spinal cord, even full-bodied zombies would have to drag themselves around by their teeth," John explains. "Which, by the way, is hilarious to watch."

"Where are the other zombies?" Nunnally asks. "Brother said you had almost a hundred of them down here, but I can't hear anything."

"Oh, they're around," John says absently, removing one of the specimen's kidneys. "Move the heart aside for a second, Lelouch."

I do as instructed, my stomach roiling a bit at the squelching sound the blood makes under my gloved fingers. "How can you stand this?" I grumble.

"_You're_ the one who put the gloves on," John points out. "Besides, at least they don't stink, as rotting corpses tend to do."

"I'm familiar with what corpses smell like, thanks."

"You can put the heart back now."

"Though," I continue absently, "wouldn't it be nice if The Doctor swooped in to save us all?"

"I think that would be jumping the shark on a level unheard of. Besides, he's fictional."

"Yeah, I know _that_. I was just thinking out loud. Who's your favorite Doctor?"

"Five. Not many men can carry off a decorative vegetable."

"I don't think I've seen any of him. I've only watched the newer episodes."

"He was in one of the newer episodes."

"Really? Which one?"

"One of the shorts. It's on YouTube if-"

"Um." John and I both stop talking at once and turn our attention to Nunnally. "I'm sorry to interrupt," she says, "but I really have no idea what you two are talking about."

"Sorry, Nanny," Kantor says. "Whenever you put two or more nerds together, they're going to talk about something nerdy, to the exclusion of anyone in the room whose social gatherings don't include Dungeons & Dragons. The best we can offer is to give you a quick recap of the entire series in hopes that you might be able to contribute to the conversation."

"Can't we just talk about something else?"

"That's also an option. What do you want to talk about?"

"Umm… Lelouch seems to be going through girlfriends really quickly lately," she suggests.

"I have not!"

"What's this, _zhuchok_?" John asks teasingly. "Have you become a player?"

"No," I snap at him. "It's complicated."

"Okay." John hands me a scalpel. "Give me that thing," he orders, pointing at the zombie's liver.

"Why? Is it important?"

"Maybe. Just give it to me."

"If it's not important, why do you need it?"

"If it wasn't important, I wouldn't be asking you for it. Maybe."

"There's that word again. Is it important or not? Be honest!"

"It's important."

"There, see? Was that so hard?"

"Yes. I think I may be bleeding internally. In any case, I specifically designed Phalanx to show the highest concentrations of it in their livers. I want to analyze this one and see if it's the same."

"The liver, not the brain?" Nunnally asks. "How come?"

"Because most people won't think to check the liver," John explains, winking at her. "The liver is designed to filter certain chemicals out of the bloodstream. That's why the poor thing gets hit so hard by alcoholism. If whoever did this is using a modified form of Phalanx, it'll show up."

"What's Phalanx?"

"The chemical solution I used to make my zombies."

"If someone _is_ using Phalanx, can't they modify it enough so it doesn't show up?" I ask.

"Why would they? I'm the only one who knew it _would_ show up, before now."

"They might've checked when they were testing it."

"Maybe. Here's hoping they didn't, though. If they did, we'll be out of leads until Prince Schnazzy is found."

I sigh deeply. "Are you absolutely sure you don't have any ideas about who did this?" I ask.

"A crazy person."

"Beyond that."

"A crazy person with mad connections."

"You just described the entirety of Britannian nobility," I point out, but John just shrugs

"Um, Dr. Kantor, about what you were saying earlier," Nunnally pipes up, "do you really think this is all over the world?"

"Not yet, probably, but give it time."

"Encouraging."

"Is there any antidote to Phalanx?" Nunnally asks, ignoring me.

"A bullet to the brain. If I can find a faster way to make every zombie drop dead simultaneously without killing any normal people I'll consider it a miracle."

"Oh. That's really sad."

"Indeed." John sighs and starts pulling his gloves off. "That's enough of that, I think," he says. "Lelouch, slide our friend here into that shoot there."

"Is that the incinerator?"

"Yep."

"You're just gonna burn him?" I ask. "There's nothing else you need?"

"Nope. We don't need to water; let the motherfucker burn."

"Watch your mouth!"

"I can't. I'm afraid of mirrors."

"Must you exhale facetiousness with every breath you take?"

"Yes."


End file.
